De Paauw town hall in Wassenaar. (Photo: Chris de Waard)
“Wassenaar has a structurally balanced budget, no debts, money in the bank and sufficient savings to replace the swimming pool or other social facilities if they are written off.” Wassenaar councilor for finance Laurens van Doeveren proudly presented the first budget of the council that took office in March of this year on Monday evening.
Van Doeveren: “As a new council, we are going to invest heavily in the village. And we do this without tax increases. So no increase in property tax as the previous council wanted. So that was not necessary at all. We can cover everything from the income.” The council also leaves the tourist tax unchanged.
In the budget, the council provides the financial basis for the plans from the coalition agreement ‘Together for Wassenaar’, presented in March. “The budget is in balance. This means that every euro in current expenditure on sports, youth work, culture or road safety, for example, is also covered by structural income through the municipal fund or taxes,” says Van Doeveren. Depreciation saves for future investments. The municipality sets aside millions for this every year.
Councilor Laurens van Doeveren (VVD, finance) explains the municipal budget and the investments that Wassenaar wants to make in the coming years.
Municipal yard
Concrete plans that must be implemented in the coming years include the construction of homes for various target groups. One of those locations is the municipal yard. “We are going to move them to the edge of the municipality. The shipyard is now located on expensive land in the middle of the village. That is a beautiful location where we can realize many homes,” says Van Doeveren. “But first the soil there will be remediated, because it is contaminated.” It is not yet known where exactly the shipyard will move. “But we do have a few locations in mind.”
Centre
Another project in which the municipality wants to invest heavily in the coming years is the center plan. “I expect to come up with a proposal within two months. Then, after seven years of discussions, we will finally get to work on measures to renovate the center and make it more pleasant.” Van Doeveren promises to renovate the public space and add many extra trees. “A pleasant living environment where visitors like to keep coming and that offers prospects to entrepreneurs.” To combat vacancy, the municipality wants to focus on concentration of retail properties.
Shortages
From 2026, the municipality of Wassenaar will also face major shortages due to government cuts. “Just like all municipalities in the Netherlands,” says Van Doeveren. “And the solution will have to come from the government. We have also consciously chosen not to present a balanced budget and show the deficits from 2026 onwards. If there is no solution from the government, we will have to take very drastic measures,” the councilor predicts.
Politics Wassenaar