Solar panels may not be installed because they change the village view too much, a major fire in Roden and the first resident of the tax flat in Emmen has been given the key to her new home. In short, enough has happened again this week in our province. In the Week van Drenthe you get an overview of the most important news of the past week.
Residents of Annerveenschekanaal run into problems when they want to install solar panels on their roof. They need a permit, because the municipality of Aa en Hunze has labeled the village view as ‘protected’. Resident Rob Rietveld, for example, ran into these regulations when he wanted to install extra panels on the front of his house: “Nowadays I have an electric car and I wanted to generate that extra electricity consumption myself.”
Rietveld has not yet received this permit, but the city council did agree last Thursday with a proposal to relax the rules.
The N34 between Emmen and De Punt will not be widened for the time being. Due to the rising construction costs, there is only a budget for half of the original plan, so the province of Drenthe has put the plans on hold. If additional lanes are added, this will take place around the Gieten roundabout.
On Tuesday, a large fire raged on the industrial estate in Roden. A day later, entrepreneurs and the mayor of Noordenveld assessed the damage. The fire has reduced the buildings of at least eight companies to ashes and the municipality is looking at what it can do for the affected entrepreneurs. “We have offered our help. We will see what is possible, so that people can start quickly,” says mayor Klaas Smid.
Train passengers between Zwolle and Emmen could not use the train traffic between the two places on Thursday. It was on strike all day long. Wim Eilert of the VVMC trade union believes that the salary of public transport employees should be increased. “High inflation, high costs for people. So people just need to have a few extra dollars in their pockets.” Eilert also argues for a reduction in the workload.
The former tax office in Emmen has been almost completely renovated. Last Friday, the first resident, Zoë Schipper, received her key from project developer Jorgen Kruit. In a month’s time, all 82 rental properties will be occupied.