“Maybe we should make an appointment right away.” That is what Nelleke Vedelaar, provincial administrator for culture, says to Jeannet Bos, alderman of the municipality of Meppel. That agreement must then be about the Printing Museum.
“A very nice offer”, responds Jeannet Bos. “I would like to talk to Vedelaar. She knows a lot. I would like to use her knowledge.” That’s what the two say to each other in the Radio Drenthe program Cassata.
Vedelaar’s invitation was prompted by questions from the BBB. The largest party in Drenthe has asked political questions about the status of the Printing Museum in Meppel. It has financial problems and will therefore close its doors on June 1. The museum says it can no longer make ends meet with the subsidy it receives annually from the municipality: 26,000 euros. The board asks 70,000 euros from the municipality, but alderman Bos does not like that.
BBB now believes that the Printing Museum should be eligible for funding from the province. “I don’t have room in the culture budget right now,” Vedelaar responds. She points out that it is up to the new Members of Parliament to decide otherwise
Under the leadership of two formateurs, BBB, VVD, CDA and PvdA are now working on a new coalition agreement and a new college in Drenthe. “We still have to talk about this,” says Willemien Meeuwissen-Dekker, party leader for the VVD. “But in the current policy, the province supports five to six large museums with provincial importance in addition to the Drenst Museum. The Drukkerijmuseum is not part of that. That is a small museum.”
She fears that if the province now deposits extra money for the Printing Museum, it will not stop there. “Then you will immediately be asked what you are going to do with all those other museums.”
A week and a half ago, the city council met about the Drukkerijmuseum. Various parties called for one more talk with the board of the museum. But the alderman and the coalition parties believe that it is the board’s turn, since the talks have already taken place.
“Unfortunately I haven’t heard anything yet,” says Bos. She once again calls on the board of the museum to come up with a plan. And she does not expect that an expensive expert will have to be called in for this. “If you come up with a good plan on how to keep such a museum going, then there are really people who are willing to invest. There are so many entrepreneurs in Meppel. If you call on help to write our plan , someone stands up. But little is happening yet.”
In the meantime, some entrepreneurs have started a campaign to raise money for the museum. “It’s all about incidental money. The museum doesn’t benefit from that. Something really needs to be done differently.”
The BBB has asked the provincial government to provide answers before 17 May. This depends, among other things, on whether the museum can receive a provincial subsidy.