Representatives of the ten parties participating in the municipal elections in Huizen debated last night in the Power Station. Three themes were central: citizen participation, a look back at the past four years and housing construction.
The theme of housing was often a recurring theme. “According to the voter, it is therefore the most important theme in these elections”, Karin Rienstra of GroenLinks made clear. “We really have to be careful not to tackle this problem with too simplistic solutions,” said Roland Boom of the VVD.
But where should it be built? “Not in the green”, it sounded quite unanimously, but there were also politicians who dared to think ‘out of the box’. “We can build on the Vista, where the alliance can make 200 homes for starters. Politics is about making choices and the PvdA makes this choice,” said Maarten Hoelscher, who received a fierce response from colleague Rutger Rebel of the CDA: “We agreed with residents there four years ago that there will be no construction there, so we don’t want that.”
Redevelopment
From the GNI site, the future of this former industrial heart of Huizen could not be ignored. “It is a pity and sad that almost monumental buildings have fallen to the ground here,” said Karin van Werven of D66. Whether the politicians in Huizen can and should take back control in order to protect what is still standing, once again caused discussion: “The municipality has really left it alone. Now it is the turn of commercial parties.”
The strongest opposition to the current coalition came from the largest opposition party, Dorpsbelangen. “Actually, this coalition has left too much behind in the field of energy transition, the Huizer Museum and housing,” said Marian Rebel of Dorpsbelangen.