Over the past two years, approximately half of the Limburg municipalities have provided additional support for their cultural sector with municipal money.
Research
This is apparent from research by the NOS and L1. All Limburg municipalities have been notified of this. Of the 31 Limburg municipalities, 22 responded. Eleven municipalities report that they have not made any extra municipal money available for the local cultural sector. The other eleven say they did, but some of the latter group also included part of the government money.
9.4 million
The then Minister of Culture, Van Engelshoven, set aside many millions in 2020 to support the ‘local cultural infrastructure’ when it became clear that the pandemic would have significant consequences. According to their own statements, the Limburg municipalities that took part in the survey received around 9.4 million euros. 8 million of that has already been spent. So there is still almost one and a half million in the municipal coffers. According to the municipalities, that money will still be used for the cultural sector.
community houses
It is difficult to make a clear comparison between municipalities because they all use different definitions. For example, museums and theaters usually do not count because they could also receive corona support from other jars. Most municipalities mainly mean community centers and local associations when they refer to the cultural sector.
Important for associations
Sittard-Geleen is one of the municipalities that have contributed their own money. “We really wanted to preserve the community sites,” said a spokesperson. “These are important places for associations and all kinds of activities. Those locations, for example, depend on carnival for half of their income, and that was canceled last year. We canceled about three quarters of the rent.”
The municipality received 1.3 million from the government, but that was not enough for the desired goals. “About half a ton has been added from the municipal coffers to keep the community houses upright. And of the 1.3 million, a cultural institution such as De Domeinen has also been supported for, among other things, missed income.”
No money myself
Municipalities such as Maastricht, Weert, Heerlen or Venray themselves had no financial space to make additional contributions. But Maastricht, as the largest city, received 1.9 million euros from The Hague. The municipalities indicate almost unanimously that the money from The Hague was sufficient. “We pooled the money from The Hague that came from different sides and then looked at where support was needed,” said a spokesperson. “And then we looked at culture, sport, well-being and community houses. So far we have come up with the Hague money. But if there is still a need somewhere, we always want to look at it.”
Harmonies
There are also municipalities that had served too much money themselves. Gulpen-Wittem, for example, wanted to release 200,000 euros for the cultural sector, but ultimately spent 120,000 euros out of his own pocket. That was because almost 50,000 euros came from The Hague. “Thanks to the support package, for example, harmonies have had the opportunity to rehearse corona-proof in community houses,” says a spokesperson for the municipality of Gulpen-Wittem. “Because the rehearsals could continue, performances were also possible. This created a sense of community in a difficult time.”