The training fields of football club RFC in Raamsdonksveer have to give way to asylum seekers and refugees. According to the municipality of Geertruidenberg, those fields are a suitable place to comply with the Spreading Act. But starters are also thought of.
Earlier a plan was on the table for a reception location at Hermenzeil, the former marina in Raamsdonk, but that was canceled at the end of 2023. Many residents were against the arrival of an AZC in that place.
The municipality of Geertruidenberg is aware that the reception of refugees is busy with refugees. That is why conversations have been held with residents and entrepreneurs since the beginning of 2024, to arrive at a suitable location.
Relocation location
One suitable location is now on the table, namely the training fields of football club RFC. They are located between the Kloosterweg and the Eendrachtsweg in Raamsdonksveer and against the A59. “The moving location,” Mayor Marian Witte calls the place, of which the municipality owns.
There are currently 50 asylum seekers and 126 Ukrainian refugees in the old location of the Het Hoge Veer in Raamsdonksveer care institution. They can stay there until November 1. Because there is no other location available yet, the college proposes to extend the reception at the Hoge Veer by three years.
In the meantime, the fields of the football club must then be prepared for the shelter. Housing Association Thuisvester can then start building at the High Veer Homes.
Support
From local residents around the Hoge Veer there are hardly any complaints about the reception location, which is located in the middle of a residential area. “Hopefully that contributes to the support for the new location at RFC,” says Mayor Witte.
But objections have already been made. The adjacent handball and hockey associations HMC and DDHC are afraid of traffic and an increasing sense of insecurity among their youthful players, they write in a letter. They find the location too remote from the social heart of Raamsdonksveer.
Starter homes
Incidentally, it will take a while before the first asylum seekers and refugees can be housed at the intended location. The municipality of Geertruidenberg wants to have realized this within three years. Before the time comes, investigation and water still have to be done. It is also examined how the football club can be compensated because it has to hand in training fields. The municipality is thinking of artificial grass pitches, so that the football players no longer have to cross the pedestrian bridge on the Eendrachtsweg.
Incidentally, the municipality of Geertruidenberg does not only want to realize refugee reception on the RFC training fields. There will also be room for around fifty permanent homes for starters and emergency seekers. “As a result, we contribute to human shelter and a broader solution for the housing shortage.”