The Grote Kerk in Meppel has been sold to Annerie Kremer Uitvaartzorg. The intention is to organize events in the church, such as funerals, concerts, weddings or conferences. Annerie Kremer wants to get the church open to the public again as soon as possible.
The monumental church from 1422 in the center of Meppel is empty, after the Protestant Municipality of Meppel (PGM) disposed of the building in 2019. The energy and maintenance costs were too high for the PGM. The church services have been moved to the Oude Kerk, a little further in the center.
Other plans for the church were then examined. One that has come up very often is the arrival of a library. Biblionet Drenthe tells RTV Drenthe that discussions about this were held at the beginning of the year, but that was quickly put to an end.
The Christian Reformed Church ‘De Hoeksteen’ was asked by the municipality of Meppel if it was interested in going to church in the Grote Kerk. The municipality liked the construction of apartments in the Christian Reformed Church. “Of course. We think it would be great to go to that beautiful church,” says former church chairman Tijmen Koning. “But if it is too expensive for the Protestant Municipality of Meppel, it is certainly too expensive for us.” So that didn’t happen either.
The Baptist Church of Meppel has also looked into moving into the Grote Kerk. But the conclusion of this congregation is that the Grote Kerk is too small. There are no other rooms in the church for other activities.
After all options seemed to be lost, the Protestant Municipality of Meppel put the church up for sale for the symbolic amount of 1 euro. The church was not just sold to anyone, interested parties had to come up with a suitable plan for the church. In addition, not everything is possible in the church due to the zoning plan and because it is a national monument.
All plans have now been assessed by the church council of the Protestant Community of Meppel. Yesterday the church council awarded the purchase to Annerie Kremer. “The church therefore remains in Meppel hands,” she concludes.