In the short term, nothing will change for residents of the holiday parks in the municipality of Midden-Drenthe. This became clear at the municipal council meeting where the future of the parks was discussed. An extra stop is made in the process, while all parties actually want quick clarity for the residents.
“We freeze everything and first see if we get a good clear picture of how we can proceed,” says alderman Rico Schans (Municipal Interests BBB). According to him, the future of the parks will therefore remain uncertain for a while. “On the one hand, I also find that annoying. I would like to give them that clarity. But it is precisely in this process that it is very important that we take good and solid steps.”
The city council members will first discuss the legal options behind closed doors, then a trial at holiday park De Hullen in Drijber must be completed. This is followed by a tailor-made plan for each park, in which Thrianta in Spier is the first and can already start.
But the council members are certainly not unanimous on this. The administrative chaos caused by the file is regularly referred to. “We just do things together, mostly from everyone’s interest. So we don’t find it strange that it all takes so long and the unrest and frustration is increasing by the day,” says Henk de Weerd (VVD). “In our opinion, it is clearly a lot of bleating, little wool,” adds Gineke Radix-Feijen (Independent Central Drenthe). “Don’t marvel, just marvel.”
Central Drenthe has 14 parks where people live more than for recreation and actually wants to get rid of the tolerance construction that has been in place for almost thirty years in some cases. The municipality has two options: make a park suitable for recreation or transform a park into a residential area so that people can live there permanently.
That can go successfully; for example, bungalow park De Breistroeken in Nieuw-Balinge has been converted into a fully-fledged residential area. But there are also many snags to the theme. Because when is a park suitable for permanent residence? Plus, if a park turns out not to be suitable for transformation, how do you deal with it? Due to, among other things, the privacy rules, checks are difficult to carry out and do you also want to enforce in times of extreme housing shortage?
A complex puzzle. That is why the municipality will set frameworks for what is possible and what is not possible in order to prevent arbitrariness between the parks and to provide clarity to residents. But no decisions were made about those frameworks. Also tonight.
“Clear agreements must now be made that are legally enforceable. We don’t want exceptions to exceptions to exceptions! No more twisting,” responded Ageeth van Dijken (CU). “It has not become very clear to me yet,” she continued later in the evening.
Last month, the alderman presented a concrete proposal for 7 of the 14 parks. That was not well received and was immediately swept off the table. According to committee members, it was not well substantiated, devised on its own by the alderman and illogical because the test at De Hullen has not yet been completed. So tonight first followed a new step-by-step plan. The most important of which: the pilot at the Hullen in Drijber. The alderman wants to complete this test before the summer, so the council will meet informally before then.
“I don’t know what kind of film I’m in today? It’s all turned 180 degrees and we’re diametrically opposed,” says Radix-Feijen. “If we didn’t already have a hundred working groups, I would say: nice man, I can also take a night off. But that is not the case.” Arnoud Knoeff (D66) shares that opinion. “There are more and more working groups with councilors who are concerned with a piece of content and implementation. That is not our role and should never become our role. In this way we come with 2 legs in 1 trouser leg, so that we no longer lose our controlling role. perform well.”
Incidentally, according to some residents of holiday parks, that deadline of the summer is very optimistic. The bungalows must meet new requirements to be officially called a home and an appraiser must also come by to determine the value of the houses. Costs have not yet been discussed.
Conclusion: all in all, it will take some time and after that it remains to be seen what the municipality can legally do. “I don’t want to evict anyone, that is not possible at this time,” says Schans. “But that is different from not enforcing.” Knoeff: “The plan cannot be implemented at all because of legal issues and that has been known for a long time.”