News item | 02-12-2022 | 3:15 pm
The current real estate is outdated, not sustainable, poorly maintained and expensive. It is therefore important to make the real estate sustainable and future-proof. “We need to move to barracks that support the growth and deployment of the armed forces. It must offer our employees the working conditions they deserve, while being sustainable and affordable at the same time. We want to achieve this with the Strategic Real Estate Plan 2022 that was sent to the House of Representatives today,” said State Secretary Van der Maat of Defense.
Defense wants real estate that fits in with a modern armed forces. Real estate that makes an optimal contribution to the readiness and deployment of the armed forces. Van der Maat: “This does not happen overnight and the implementation will take at least 10 to 15 years. During that period, the real estate will be tackled step by step.” The frameworks for this are set out in the Strategic Real Estate Plan 2022 (SVP 2022), which is an extension of the outline letter of May 2022.
Goals SVP 2022
The SVP 2022 is an extension of the outline letter of May 2022. The 4 goals are further explained in the SVP2022:
Well prepared and ready for deployment
The operational deployability of Defense must be increased. Tomorrow’s threats demand a modern military. The Ministry of Defense will do this, among other things, by concentrating on strategic locations across the country.
Staff central
Defense employees deserve a good, modern and safe working and living environment. Due to previous cutbacks, they sometimes worked for a long time and lived in very outdated and poorly maintained buildings.
Sustainability
Making defense real estate more sustainable. For example, by renewing and insulating buildings, the Ministry of Defense wants to reduce its CO2 footprint.
Financially balanced
Due to backlogs, the maintenance budget is mainly used for corrective maintenance. This increases the bill, while maintenance backlogs continue to increase. The structural approach to real estate should put the housekeeping book in order.
Step forward
Real estate is deliberately approached step by step. The 4 goals are viewed in conjunction with each other and weighted per location and province. By starting with a number of important and strategic projects, the Ministry of Defense is taking a major step forward. These projects indicate the direction and have a relatively large impact.
This provides financial and physical space for tackling the rest of the barracks. The possibilities for the first projects are currently being investigated together with the region.
Projects and locations
Van der Maat is announcing 2 new projects today.
- Concentrating units in the Soesterberg region.
- Concentrating units and support on the Nieuwe Haven in Den Helder.
The following projects were already announced in May 2022:
- A new barracks in the Schaarsbergen region.
- New Commando Army barracks in Rucphen/Roosendaal.
- The concentration of the units that are now in Assen and Havelte.
- A new barracks location in the middle of the country. Defense is investigating 4 possible locations, with a provisional preference for a location in Zeewolde.
Talk to region
In addition to the 4 previously mentioned projects, the Ministry of Defense is also entering into discussions with the region for the 2 new projects. The aim is to arrive at a joint approach and regional and local cooperation. We are also looking at how barracks can become more part of the region, for example by sharing facilities. The Ministry of Defense is also looking at locations that may be used for new social benefits in the future.