When purchasing the Polish supermarket in Roosendaal in 2024, the city council was not well informed about the costs of buying out and the legal risks involved. This is apparent from a report that appeared on Wednesday about the buyout of the Polish supermarket, which was involved in five million euros.
The purchase had to put an end to nuisance caused by customers of the supermarket on the Gastelseweg. There were complaints about peeing wildlife, destruction and aggressive behavior. In the city council, doubts arose about how the decision before the buyout had come about and about the elaboration thereof. The city council had this research done by research agency Necker.
Not well informed
According to the researchers, the purchase was legally well put together, but there could be reservations about the political and administrative process. The researchers conclude that the city council was not on time, incomplete or not well informed about the legal risks and the costs involved in the buy -out.
For example, a advice from consultancy AKD on possible state aid was not shared with the city council. While that was important for the council members to do their work well.
Dominant role of municipal council
One of the most important conclusions of the report is that the city council took a dominant role in the file, in particular because troubled local residents of the Polish supermarket wanted the municipality to take action. The city council just did not come with clear demands on how the purchase should be done. This created different ideas about what exactly had to be included in the purchase agreement.
On the other hand, the mayor and aldermen did not do its homework properly. For example, the college decision did not happen in the normal way. The preparation and decision -making within the college were therefore not good. As a result, the city council was ultimately less able to do its job.
Officials not heard
Civil servants have felt uncomfortable throughout the process. “Their advisory role was made to a limited extent. Care and critical sounds about the process, despite the fact that they have been raised, were not sufficiently heard,” the researchers write.
The researchers advise the municipality, among other things, to make clear agreements with sensitive files about who has which roles and for which is responsible. The college and the municipal councilors will study the report and will continue to talk about it later.