City Proposes Feasibility Study on Flexible Housing

The municipality believes it is important to offer housing seekers in Voorschoten a better chance of finding a place to live. That is why additional social housing units must be built quickly, some of which will be allocated to status holders. Currently, there are fewer status holders living in Voorschoten than required by the national government’s so-called quota. The municipality is being held accountable for this by the province of South Holland. Flexible housing units are the only way to create additional housing in the short term, including for other people looking for housing who need a home urgently.

Urgent Housing Challenge

“Building permanent homes is the preferred option, but that takes too long to solve the urgent housing challenge in the short term,” explains Alderman Hans van der Elst. “A flexible home is a fully-fledged, sustainable home that is manufactured in a factory and can be quickly assembled. After, say, fifteen years, you can move such a home to a new location. From the survey for the housing vision, we know that residents believe affordable housing should be built for first-time buyers and young people. We also know that the majority have no objection to flexible homes in Voorschoten.”

Making Choices

In Voorschoten, there is little space suitable for flexible housing. For example, a site cannot have protected status, must be available for fifteen years, the land must be owned by the municipality, and utilities must be available nearby. The alderman said, “If we really want these homes to be built, we have to make some choices. From 31 possible sites, we selected the five that show the most promise.”

The Five Most Promising Locations

The five most promising sites are the IJsbaan, the Rosenburg municipal yard, the Geestwoningpad, the former Fixit site on Koninklijke Marinelaan, and the Oude Stationslaantje. Together with the housing authorities, the municipality intends to conduct a more detailed study of these five sites to assess their financial and technical feasibility. On November 2, the city council will decide whether to proceed with the feasibility study. It will then make the final decision on the construction sites in the first quarter of 2024.

Participation

Once that decision has been made, we will then hold discussions with local residents. Councilmember Van der Elst: “We will invite them to contribute their ideas on the design of the selected sites. Within the limits of what is technically and financially feasible, we will incorporate their ideas and wishes as much as possible. In any case, we’ll focus on ensuring the projects blend into the surrounding area and will strive to preserve existing green spaces as much as possible. In this way, we’ll work together to increase the availability of affordable housing for those looking for a home in Voorschoten.”