The police station on Westerstraat in Roden disappears. Space is being made for the local police in the Noordenveld town hall on Raadhuisstraat.
This means that the ‘desk function’ of the police in Roden is retained, while the current building can be sold. The police in the Northern Netherlands are busy using the available square meters more efficiently. For example, reporting is increasingly done digitally and agents can work increasingly mobile. This means that many police stations have space left.
This is also the case in Roden. That is why the move from Westerstraat to the town hall has been discussed for a number of years. Initially, the move was supposed to be a fact on January 1, 2022, but almost three years later – partly because the municipality of Noordenveld was still looking at the exact use of the town hall – this is not yet the case.
According to Mayor Klaas Smid, the delay is due to the police housing assignment. “It had been discussed for a while, but the process was later restarted. That made it all take a little longer.”
With the disappearance of the police station, the ‘attendance location’ in Roden will no longer be available. Officers will first gather in Vries at the start of their shift, after which they will enter the neighborhood. There is room for officers to work in the town hall, while there is also room for residents to physically visit there.
Mayor Smid considers the latter a requirement. “We think it is important that people can go to Roden. That is why officers are given a consultation room in the town hall. This way they also stay in good contact with our residents. I am happy that we will soon have the officers here.”
The move should be completed next week and the officers’ workplaces in the town hall should be set up. “It has no further consequences for our own staff who work at the town hall,” says Smid.
The officers enter at the back – via the staff entrance. “And they are housed in such a way that they can go outside again quickly,” Smid adds. “So if something is going on, they can respond quickly.”