Groningen City Hall will be closed until further notice due to a sewer blockage. It was previously hoped that the blockage could be resolved in one poop and one fart, but it turns out to be more serious than expected.
In recent weeks, the sewer service had to respond twice to clogged toilets at city hall, the last time on Wednesday. Then the evening program of the city council was canceled at the last minute because the toilets were unusable. Council members and city hall employees had to go to the Forum, the municipal office on Kreupelstraat or a café on the Grote Markt for a sanitary stop.
Employees of Peter Kuil Sewer Service spent the afternoon and evening hours trying to find the cause of the blockage, but without success. More has become clear in recent days. A spokesperson for the municipality cannot yet say what the exact cause of the blockage is, but it is clear that the situation is much more serious than expected.
Email to users
An email to the users of the city hall states that in consultation with Mayor Koen Schuiling, it has been decided to close the building from Monday February 19 ‘due to a serious blockage’ of the sewer. The city hall will only reopen once the blockage has been cleared.
It’s a blessing in disguise that spring break is next week. Politics is therefore at a standstill, which means there would be significantly fewer people at city hall anyway.
However, there would be a renovation in the city council chamber. The highest official of the municipality will be given a place next to the aldermen, and two benches in the public gallery will make way for places for the press and advisors to the aldermen.
It is still unclear whether the renovation of the council chamber will be at risk and what that means financially. This also applies to how long it can take until the sewer blockage is resolved.