The large-scale renovation of the Westfries Museum in Hoorn will take longer than expected. The municipality of Hoorn announced this today. Due to the delay, the Hoorn museum will probably not open until a year later. They also expect that the costs for the renovation will be higher. It is not known how much more expensive this will be.
With the major renovation of the Westfries Museum, not only the foundation under the monumental building is being tackled and a new basement is being installed. This was also a great opportunity for the museum to become more sustainable, with an eye to the future.
However, the renovation plans have now been considerably delayed. According to the municipality, this is because more time is needed to coordinate the plans with Stichting Monumentenbezit, which owns the Roode Steen number 1, part of number 16, and the Achterom 6.
Need
“The foundation agrees with the need for foundation repair and restoration,” says a spokesman for the municipality. “However, there is no agreement yet on the elaboration of other interventions – particularly in the field of sustainability, accessibility for the disabled and the route in the museum.”
The municipality of Hoorn and the foundation will work together with the Westfries Museum to reach a compromise. They have deployed extra people for this. “We knew that there was a very ambitious schedule,” says alderman Axel Boomaars. “Especially because of the deadline for national subsidies. Fortunately, we have now been able to get an extension for this, and we have even received 1.5 million in extra subsidies from the government and the province.”
Future
According to Boomaars, they also see the importance of the building on the Roode Steen for the future. “This delay is a setback, but we will continue to work together for a good end result.”
With all the research that also needs to be carried out, it is expected that there will be a good picture next summer, and that an agreement has been reached. “We assume that we will have an agreement before the summer holidays. The total delay would then be about a year.”
The project will also cost more money due to the delay. It is not known how much extra money is needed.