A camper of over seven meters long is keeping people busy in Boxmeer. The thing is in the owner’s front garden at the Groenling in the Luneven district. That is a sore point for a local resident who thinks that the camper blocks the view. A letter has even been sent to the municipality, asking for stricter rules for storing a camper at a house.
According to the local resident, the camper has been parked in front of the house for more than five months for two years in a row. The letter writer fears that this will happen again this year. The letter states that the camper affects ‘the streetscape and the spatial quality of our street’, creates a ‘disfigured situation in the public space’ and reduces the ‘living enjoyment of local residents’.
“It destroys the streetscape,” says a neighbor The Gelderlander. “I’m not allowed to put a large billboard in my front yard, am I?” The local residents who spoke to Omroep Brabant see it differently. They do not find the camper disturbing. “This way there is more room for the car,” jokes a woman who lives further down the street.
Practical advantage
The owner of the camper does not want to respond substantively to Omroep Brabant. He does not want to fight the conflict through the media and fears that this will further escalate the situation. He told De Gelderlander that the camper will remain in the driveway for the time being, although he also understands the neighbors’ objections.
Yet for the owner the practical advantage is the deciding factor. “We can actually get in and go.” Last weekend he went out with the camper, he told the newspaper. “I can clean it quietly tonight.”
Lines
The camper owner says he is willing to take the camper to a storage facility if the vehicle is not used for a longer period of time. He also emphasizes that ‘the applicable rules’ are complied with. “If they change, I will of course adhere to them.”
After a report about the camper, enforcement officers took action last year. After investigation and consultation with lawyers, they concluded that the owner was not violating any rules. In the municipality of Land van Cuijk it is allowed to park a camper in your own driveway.
Additional requirements
That is not the case everywhere. Some municipalities impose additional requirements. For example, campers sometimes have to be behind the facade of a house. In Utrecht, a camper may be parked in the front garden, but only at a minimum distance of seven meters from the public road.
The letter writer hopes that stricter rules will also be introduced in Land van Cuijk. This means that the camper should no longer be parked in front of the house.