The municipality of Midden-Drenthe is continuing the legal proceedings surrounding Speelstad Oranje. Migrant workers are currently staying in the pipodorp behind the former amusement park. According to the owners, this is according to the rules, according to the municipality it is not. They therefore come up with an announcement of an order subject to periodic penalty payments, in other words a recovery sanction.
In January, residents of the village of Oranje near the former playing city noticed a striking number of activities for an empty bungalow park. They rang the bell with the municipality, after which enforcers went to investigate. It turned out that houses in the pipodorp were being prepared for occupancy, which was followed by a warning to the owners.
Warning
According to PvdA alderman Dennis Bouwman, 27 holiday homes are currently inhabited in the bungalow park. “We send our supervisors every week and it is correct that they are still there at the moment,” he said. But according to one of the owners, Amresh Bajnath, it concerns more migrant workers. He says that there are currently 100 to 120 migrant workers living there and they are not in 27 holiday homes.
The municipality wants the occupation to be ended and already sent the owners a warning about this in January. Bouwman: “There has been an urgent request not to accommodate new labor migrants and to end the stay of the labor migrants who were already housed in the park as soon as possible.”
Despite this, according to the municipality, enforcers still find new labor migrants. “That is why we have moved to step two: on February 18, we sent a pre-announcement of a cease and desist order to the owners. Now we are going a step further.”
‘It’s not illegal at all’
The deadline indicated by the municipality is March 19. Then the park must be empty. But Bajnath is firm and says that’s not going to happen. “They are blunt with the procedure, but it is not illegal at all what we are doing,” he explains. “We believe that it is allowed and we will therefore continue with it. The alderman is very firm and I do not understand why.”
Bajnath previously wanted to accommodate asylum seekers in the park and the municipality saw no room for that either. “The park has been empty for so long. Why are local residents not aware that recreation is not the solution? As far as I am concerned, Orange is open to receiving refugees from Ukraine. If they come, I will welcome them with open arms.”
‘They’re like rockets’
The subject of Speelstad Oranje is clearly on the radar of several political parties. The theme regularly raises questions for the alderman. City councilors fear that the legal procedure will mean that residents will be stuck in the current situation for longer, and according to councilors, this is an unpleasant situation.
“How can we ensure that the nuisance for residents remains limited?”, D66 party chairman Arnoud Knoeff wonders aloud. “Bus come and go,” adds councilor Jan Jonker of Municipal Interests. “Especially between 4.30 pm and 5 pm and that goes at a speed… They are like rockets.”
Alderman Bouwman also fears a long process. “The council will have to act really carefully. I hope that the park will be free in a few weeks. That does not help residents right now, but we are doing our best.”
PvdA party leader Joop Kramer also wonders how high the penalty will be. “Is that in proportion to the profit that the housing of migrant workers now generates for the current owners?”
Destination plan
Bajnath does not consider the action of the municipality to be promising. “What we do is just in line with the zoning plan,” he emphasizes once again. “Plus they completely ignore our point of view. We pointed this out to them in a letter. I have the feeling that they are abusing their power. I want to talk, but in response I get a penalty.”
Alderman Bouwman: “The lawyer for the owners has responded and says on behalf of the owners that they are acting in line with the zoning plan. But there is a recreational destination and not a housing destination. We remain open to recreational use.”