Two river cruise ships will be docked in Zaandam and skippers and residents disagree. The mooring place would be at the expense of shipping, while there are already few mooring places available in the region. Sunniva Fluitsma of Algemeene Schippers Vereniging wants the Municipality of Zaanstad to think about other places: “Only places have been removed, then this will hit extra hard.”
The decision to moor the boats on Havenstraat comes as a major blow to shipping. Sunniva Fluitsma of the General Schippers Association (ASV) explains that there was no consultation. “It’s about trying to find a solution together in one way or another, doing that together with those involved.”
scarce
Because of the boat, there are hardly any places left for commercial shipping. “The long quay is for passenger shipping,” says Fluitsma. Professional shipping more at the Havenstraat if they have to wait until they can continue to the port of Amsterdam. Where places are scarce. Without a berth, the skippers cannot carry out their work properly. “The moment they call, you have to go straight to the port.”
In addition, with the boat is also a jetty that is lost. Without the jetty, the skippers cannot leave the car while waiting until they can resume work.
Nuisance
The boats for the refugees will be higher than the ships that are currently lying there and that worries residents of the Havenstraat. “Road view,” says Manon Gras. Like other residents, she wonders what will happen to the neighborhood if she suddenly gets 260 new neighbors. In addition, aggregates will be installed on the boats, which must provide the boats with power, and these cause noise and odor nuisance.
Text continues under tweet from mayor Jan Hamming
There are also talks among the residents that it will initially involve 20 children and 40 men, among other things. “We do not yet know who will be coming,” said spokesman for Mayor Jan Hamming, Sebastiaan Hoek. “So we don’t know where they come from yet, except from Ukraine.” What the municipality does know is that the refugees come from the Hembrug site.
Other location
According to Hoek, the boats will be moored near the Havenbuurt, other locations do not seem to be negotiable. Despite the fact that residents and skippers would like to. Fluitsma explains that for commercial shipping, being further away is not an option. This is because, according to the skipper, some locks are ‘unreliable’.
Fluitsma: “Our problem is that we have to go to a lock and then you shouldn’t have any obstacles.” Tomorrow morning, the shipping industry will have a meeting with alderman Slegers. Fluitsma is curious about the conversation and hopes that the boats with refugees will be moored at a different location, such as at Verkade: “We will see.”