Residents who stay permanently at the Wico holiday park in Schoonoord do not have to fear enforcement from the municipality of Coevorden for the time being. The municipality is freezing this previously announced enforcement, pending an ongoing investigation into the future of the park.
Alderman Steven Stegen (BBC2014) made this promise during the committee meeting tonight. This research is expected to be completed by the end of March at the earliest. Committee members Irma Talens (VVD) and Sandra Katerberg (CDA) strongly urged the councilor not to enforce the law until then.
The reason was the argument of Wico resident Gerben Blaauw, who presented his own extensive research into the future of the bungalow park in Schoonoord at the same committee meeting. RTV Drenthe already reported this investigation on Monday.
Wico and the municipality have been involved in a protracted conflict since 2017 over permanent residence in the park. According to Blaauw, his study is crystal clear: a large majority of 88 percent of residents would prefer that the park remain essentially as it is. So that there is room for both recreational rental and permanent residence. A total of 64 of the 68 residents participated in a survey.
Talens: “It cannot be the case that on the one hand we do nothing with our own investigation, but in the meantime we continue with the announced enforcement.” She found Katerberg on her path, as well as Paulien Blaauwgeers (PAC).
The councilor, in consultation with Mayor Renze Bergsma, agreed not to enforce the law for the time being. However, he stood his ground when it came to the implementation of the scan desired by the municipality. It previously became clear that the landowner of Wico would not want to grant the municipality access to the park for this purpose. Stegen now: “We still want to conduct the investigation, but without that cooperation.”
Blaauw’s study itself was not discussed in substance today. “Although there are several comments going through my head at the moment,” Councilor Stegen said.
Talens and Katerberg proposed to free up space in a meeting at short notice to discuss the study of the Wico residents, but Thieno Nijenbanning (BBC2014) and Gilbert Mulder (PvdA) in particular stopped that option. “This report is now available. Let’s then wait for the scan from the municipality, so that we can deal with everything at once,” said Nijenbanning.
Blaauw’s report calls on the one hand to look constructively together at the future for Wico, but on the other hand it also criticizes the actions of the municipality. Blaauw speaks, among other things, about a ‘fabricated decision.’ “After all, we have not been able to find anywhere the decision that Wico should completely return to recreation,” he said. “But we are willing to put this behind us if we can look to the future together. We are not out to get angry.”