Council accepts additional Schooten Plaza parking spaces

Den Helder – A majority of the city council approved the plan to create additional parking spaces at Schooten Plaza on Monday evening. Investments will also be made in the surrounding greenery and in a new cycle and pedestrian path. The City Party submitted an amendment to remove the additional parking spaces from the plan, but this proposal received no support.

According to Harry van Dongen, leader of the Stadspartij, there is plenty of space to park. He sees with his own eyes that the area around the mall is not busy at all. Research showing that additional parking space is necessary goes back many years. According to Van Dongen, the situation has now changed and therefore it is better to invest the money entirely in greenery and other infrastructure. Different advisors have different experiences with parking. Henk Mosk from D66, for example, said it is very full, especially at weekends.

Always up-to-date research
The request for more parking space initially came from the contractors of the Schooten Plaza. However, in recent years it has not been possible to realize more space, as a lot of space has been taken up by renovations in the apartments on the east side of the mall. Alderman Peter de Vrij said that with this proposal this wish has finally come true for several years. According to him, the data showing that more parking spaces are needed will remain up to date. Money was also earmarked earlier in the budget for parking in the Schooten. With this plan, 34 places will be added.

In the end, only the City Party and Samen Actief voted in favor of the amendment to remove the additional parking spaces. Carlo Assorgia from Beter voor Den Helder said he was happy that the municipality could finally offer this to the entrepreneurs of De Schooten. According to Harmen Krul, it’s not just about shops, there’s also a social function.