The municipality and the United Utrecht Muslims (VUMO) have not yet reached agreement on the price of the part of Tolsteeg that is to become an Islamic cemetery. The latest state of affairs is that the VUMO does not consider the amount requested by the municipality to be reasonable and wants to take over the plot for a ‘symbolic amount’.
There has been talk for some time about the arrival of an Islamic cemetery and the municipality already received a request from several Muslim organizations in 2020 to create such a place. The council has investigated where in the city that cemetery could be located and part of the Tolsteeg cemetery turned out to be suitable. In February 2022 the city council approved the plan.
Sieving soil
All kinds of preparatory work is now planned. For example, the green strip between the cemetery and the backyards of the houses on the Houtensepad is being restored. “By improving the vegetation under the existing tree structure, the green strip along the adjacent gardens is restored and thus also improves the privacy for residents and those present at the cemetery,” the council writes.
The soil must also be sieved before it can be transferred to the VUMO. This is done to ensure that there are no remains of ancient graves in the earth. “The tender for this intensive activity is now being prepared. In this way, maps are made where and how deep the clearance needs to be done.”
Price
In the meantime, the municipality is investigating what the reasonable conditions are for selling the plot. An external appraiser has appraised the plot. “To determine the land price, the appraiser took into account the land policy of the municipality of Utrecht, whereby a reduced land price is applied for social functions such as these.”
Based on this assessment, the municipality then made an offer to VUMO. This would include the costs incurred in the preparatory work. The municipality would also have offered the VUMO several alternatives, including the option to use the land on a leasehold basis so that no one-time price had to be paid, but an annual one.
Symbolic amount
“VUMO indicates that it does not consider a land price in accordance with the municipal land policy to be reasonable,” the council writes. “VUMO also considers it undesirable to acquire the land on a leasehold basis. […] VUMO wants to take over the land for a symbolic amount. According to the church, commercial exploitation is not possible, given the desired eternal rest. They do not consider a market-based price as reasonable.”
If both parties cannot reach an agreement, VUMO will have an appraisal carried out itself, according to the municipality.
Tags: Municipality United Utrecht Muslims disagree price Islamic cemetery
