Residents of the Hoofddorp Oranjebuurt are tired of waiting. For two and a half years, their houses have been nominated to be demolished, but when the 1950s homes go down is coffee grounds. In the meantime, the defects are piling up: the houses are full of mold, mice and nude snails.
A group of residents made banners and flyers and went to get a story yesterday at housing corporation Ymere, who had a meeting on the subject on the program. “We are going to show our face there. Show that we are more than a house number and a name,” says Jessica van Brienen, who lives with her 15-year-old son on the Nassaustraat.
The biggest problem becomes clear in his room. There is a lot of fungus around the windows. A large fungal spot on the ceiling is covered with a wooden plate and Mickey Mouse flag. “We didn’t get it away anymore,” Jessica explains.
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Sylvia Tiekstra lives a little further. Her bedroom is regularly full of mouse keys. She also had a leak of the sewer twice. “I slid out and thought it was just water, but it turned out to be stools. Then I cried and screamed so hard that the neighbor could hear it,” she says.
When the action group arrives at the Ymere office in Hoofddorp, they are met with coffee and tea. “I did not expect you to come out,” says Jessica pleasantly surprised.
Ymere is working on solution
The residents can talk to a number of employees. One of those employees says NH has not yet had any answers, but emphasizes that it is also very important to them. “We are going to listen to all the stories and work on a solution,” he promises.
On the site of the demolition homes, new construction must eventually be built, but those plans are delayed. When the bullet is through the church, residents get a replacement home and the opportunity to finally return.
A number of residents were already offered a two-room apartment, but that is too small for Jessica and her son. “And the rent would go up considerably.”
Local politics rings on bells
The local PvdA/GroenLinks faction has since asked the college questions. A spokesperson for the Municipal Executive of the municipality of Haarlemmermeer – which must approve the new construction plans – says that they first answer those questions before they want to answer questions from journalists.
Jessica and Sylvia feel at least heard by Ymere. Yet they do not yet dare to hope for a solution. “But we are now further than we ever got,” said Jessica. This Monday someone from Ymere will visit her home.