Weesp one year under Amsterdam administration: a ‘local social disaster’ threatens

Call for child services

Well before the municipal merger, there were major problems in Weesp with regard to children’s facilities. Years later and a municipal merger further, the situation does not seem to have changed much. This is evident from a tour of NH in which Weespers still complain bitterly about the children’s facilities. Paul van den Berg, speaking on behalf of the action group De Kleine Weespers, even talks about a ‘local social disaster’. The action group was born out of the need and the call for children’s facilities. Their goal? Increasing the childcare and school capacity in Weesp in consultation with the municipality and other parties.

According to Van den Berg, the municipality has not yet succeeded in offering a solution to the major shortages of childcare locations. On the contrary: the ambitious construction plans of the municipality of Amsterdam will, according to him, make the problems even bigger. The long waiting lists at childcare cause a lot of unrest among (future) parents. In the fastest growing city in the Netherlands, child-friendly neighborhoods are popping up like mushrooms, but according to them, they lack facilities.

Laughable

The calculations of the action group show that if Weesp continues to grow at this rate, in combination with the construction plans and figures of the municipality itself, the city of Weesp will need 24 extra childcare locations in eight years. Paul van den Berg calls the promised children’s facilities coupled with the construction of 600 homes a cloth for the bleeding. Van den Berg: “It would be laughable if it were not so tragic.”

That the problems are far from resolved is also apparent from the story of Niels van Luijt (36). His family will move into a new home in Weesperssluis at the end of this year, but is still in great uncertainty now that childcare for his two young children is not feasible. The waiting times for this have quadrupled in recent years. Van Luijt: “With what I know now, I would definitely have bought a similar house somewhere else. This situation causes too much stress, we are constantly puzzling.”

Arrogance of the big city

In addition, Van Luijt notes that the municipality and its plans lack a realistic picture. Van Luijt: “If you can build 600 extra homes, you can also ensure that there are sufficient children’s facilities. You feel the arrogance of the big city of Amsterdam, which does not understand what is going on in Weesp and what needs are there.”

And that is a pity, says Van Luijt. He would much rather be busy preparing for the move to their ‘dream house’ in Weesp instead of these headaches. Still, he is confident that things will turn out well with the care of his young children. He has no choice: “In the worst case scenario, my wife has to stop working, but that is really the last thing we want.”

Fire letter

Weesp politicians are also not pleased with Alderman Van Dantzig’s intention to build even more homes in Weesp. This week they sent an urgent letter to the Amsterdam council, which they say ‘closes its eyes’ to the Weesper problems. A majority of the management committee in the Weesp urban area finds this incomprehensible and points to the problems that Weesp is experiencing due to the explosive growth. The problems become clear in recent figures from the municipality itself.

According to Mathijs Petri, committee member of the local WSP, it is incomprehensible that the council is acting as if nothing is going on in Weesp. Petri: “Now it’s childcare, but after that the schools, sports fields and healthcare will come under heavy pressure.”

Municipal bureaucracy

The debacle surrounding children’s facilities is not the only hot topic in Weesp. The new legislation surrounding events is also difficult for the Weespers. For example, a Weesper tried it last summer to stop a traditional city festival at the very last moment. Something Daniëlle Wijnen, co-organizer of the Sluis-en-Bruggenfeest, is not afraid of this year. “The party is coming and we are very excited.”

According to her, since the merger there is ‘a bit more to it than before’ in organizing the party, which has been organized by and for Weespers since 1978. “Because we only work with volunteers, we ask a little more of them, which is sometimes difficult.”

She explains that officials impose the same rules on the small-scale folk festival as, for example, the Pride Amsterdam event. Something that, according to Wijnen, not only the Amsterdam city council can be blamed, but also the Weesp area. “Our party is often cited as a pillar of Weesp society, but we are never included in meetings. That all happens behind closed doors.” Nevertheless, Wijnen thinks that everything will run smoothly: “The city of Amsterdam still has to get used to our traditions and we to theirs.”