€36.8 million from the Public Housing Fund for regional application Parkstad

The government contribution will be used to tackle 864 private homes in the municipalities of Beekdaelen, Brunssum, Kerkrade and Landgraaf as well as to invest in the redevelopment of public spaces. In addition to the City Region of Parkstad Limburg, the municipality of Heerlen will also receive a contribution for Heerlen-Noord. The contributions from the Public Housing Fund mark the next step in the ambition to grow as a city region to the level of an average city in the Netherlands. Kerkrade will receive a sum of 14 million euros.

Tim Weijers, Alderman and deputy mayor of Kerkrade and chairman of the Executive Committee on Housing and Restructuring of the City Region of Parkstad Limburg: "In recent years we have often asked The Hague for attention to the particularly large task in the private housing stock. We have also acted jointly as Parkstad municipalities in recent months in this subsidy application. The approach has paid off. I am very happy with the government grant. With this impulse we can immediately work on a better housing market and livability in our neighborhoods and districts.

For Kerkrade, this means getting to work on housing in Bleijerheide and Hopel/Erensteinerveld, among other areas. In the Bleijerheide district, there are major liveability problems in certain parts. There is a lot of nuisance.

For the Hopel/Erensteinerveld we are trying to make the homes more energy efficient and are committed to improving the social/living quality and livability in these neighborhoods. The homes will be upgraded to make them future-proof.

People's Housing Fund

The cabinet has a budget of €450 million available to invest in the housing quality and sustainability of the housing stock in those areas where livability is under pressure. The private housing stock is central to this. All municipalities in the Netherlands could apply in recent months for a contribution from the fund, but the Rijksoverheid looked in particular at the sixteen urban renewal areas (including Heerlen North) and the thirteen border and shrinkage regions (including the Parkstad Limburg region). In the Parkstad region, an application was submitted for several municipalities. Gemeente Heerlen submitted a separate application for the urban renewal area 'Heerlen Noord'.

Roel Wever, mayor of Heerlen and chairman of the Parkstad Limburg City Region: 'This is the only area in the Netherlands that is both a border and shrinkage region and also has an urban renewal area. This says something about the task in this region. In total, the contribution from the Public Housing Fund for both applications (Heerlen North and Parkstad) is €45 million. With this substantial contribution, Minister Ollongren is showing her appreciation for the way in which we are tackling these challenges together. I am very pleased with the good cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations.

Regional program

The Parkstad municipalities jointly applied for a contribution from the Public Housing Fund. A total of €36.8 million has been granted by the State to tackle 864 private homes and the redevelopment of 50,000 square meters of public space in the municipalities of Beekdaelen, Brunssum, Kerkrade and Landgraaf. 519 homes will be renovated and 345 will be demolished. In return, 224 new homes will be built. Housing corporations have an important role in the program and, in conjunction with the private housing stock, will also address approximately 1,500 social housing units.

Whe quality of living and quality of life

The program builds on experiences gained in projects such as Rolduckerveld (Kerkrade) and the Egge (Brunssum). Attention is also paid to aspects such as sustainability, safety and climate adaptation. The approach goes hand-in-hand with the implementation of a regional and local approach to strengthening the socio-economic position of the region. This continues the approach of the Region Deal, where physical interventions are a catalyst for investments in education, health, sustainability, tackling poverty and security.

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• - Beekdaelen: €4.9 million
• - Brunssum: €11 million
• - Kerkrade: €14 million
• - Landgraaf: €6.9 million

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South Limburg

Gemeente Heerlen receives a contribution from the Volkshuisingsfonds for the urban renewal area Heerlen Noord. Reference is made to the separate press release of the Municipality of Heerlen for this purpose. A total State contribution of €45 million has been granted for projects aimed at improving the livability of neighborhoods and districts in Parkstad and Heerlen Noord. Stadsregio Parkstad Limburg also congratulates the municipalities of Maastricht and Sittard-Geleen on the allocation of a contribution from the Public Housing Fund