South Holland wants to build more homes; also in Sliedrecht-Noord

THE HAGUE / SLIEDRECHT – The Province of South Holland wants to build homes in Sliedrecht-Noord. South Holland wants an additional 12,000 homes to be built, on top of the existing agreements. The planning area north of Sliedrecht is now explicitly mentioned in a letter.

The provincial government of South Holland is doing this at the urgent request of Housing Minister Hugo de Jonge (CDA). Previously pictured here together with councilor Ton Spek (CDA) from Wonen. South Holland is looking for many more housing plans in the province and the municipality of Sliedrecht wants to build in Sliedrecht-Noord, among other places. The province now appears to be going along with this. (Archive photo Hans van der Aa / Sliedrecht24)

In a letter, the Provincial Executive (GS) writes that help is needed to actually have the houses built. It states: “More than 100 locations are included on the list of 3ha locations. That list includes housing plans with an area of ​​three or more hectares. The plan is to add the Gnephoek and Sliedrecht-Noord locations,” says GS. The planning capacity is also being expanded to accommodate delays and plan cancellations. The intention is to implement existing plans for 15,000 homes more quickly. In addition, additional plans are needed for another 34,000 homes. In the short term, the number of accepted plans should add up to around 273,000 homes. That is a huge task, the provincial government is asking for time from the minister to discuss and assess those plans. The limit used for an affordable home will increase from €355,000 to €390,000.

Need help
Minister for Housing Hugo de Jonge and the Provincial Executive of South Holland are discussing how to tackle the housing crisis. South Holland responds to the minister, but also needs his help. The province wants two-thirds of these new homes to also be affordable. Many people do not have enough money for an expensive home to purchase or rent. For example, when raising the limit for affordable owner-occupied homes, the province asks how to ensure that less expensive homes are also built. In addition, the Provincial Executive wants help to make enough social rental housing possible. More than half of all South Holland households are eligible for this, which is why 100,000 new social rental homes are needed. The province wants these homes to be distributed fairly throughout South Holland and asks the minister to help think about how to make this possible.

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At the beginning of March 2023, De Jonge visited a CDA meeting. Even then, De Jonge made it clear that construction had to take place in South Holland. The recordings were made in the Sliedrecht-Noord polder. In the video, councilor Ton Spek, current deputy Meindert Stolk and Minister Hugo de Jonge. (Archive video Peter Donk / Sliedrecht24)

Room
The minister and the Provincial Executive both see that South Holland is a densely built-up province. In addition to homes, space is also needed for businesses, agriculture, energy, roads, nature and recreation. It is important to use the last open space sparingly. The province is working with the minister to find smart rules to use space efficiently. However, the provincial government also wants to see whether new space for housing can be found in some locations. South Holland is already investigating whether the extra-urban plans will quickly lead to housing or whether they only exist on paper for the time being. We then want to exchange the paper plans for locations where construction can take place quickly. The housing challenge for South Holland is high in any case. With the new choices, almost a quarter of a million homes will be built in South Holland between 2023 and 2030. To this end, both the national government and the province are busy removing as many obstacles as possible. These so-called ‘critical success factors’ have not all been resolved yet. South Holland says it will continue with this and asks the minister to do the same. The Minister and the Provincial Executive will discuss this subject further.