ZWAAG – Tackling drug trafficking and locations where drugs are made is one of the spearheads in Hoorn. To effectively meet this challenge, the municipality of Hoorn and Parkmanagement have joined forces by signing an agreement. The aim of this partnership is to combat undermining crime in commercial properties and to increase awareness among property owners and landlords.
Mayor Jan Nieuwenburg emphasizes the importance of owners and landlords who act proactively: “We want to make property owners and property landlords more aware of the risks. Too often we see that owners are surprised when a drug location is found in their building. The screening of potential tenants in advance is important, but it also involves checks during the rental period.”
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Pieter Veeter, director of Park Management, adds: “We ask the owner to be and remain alert, and, for example, to make unexpected visits to their rented property. Controls at the front and during the rental period should help prevent tenants from coming with bad plans and wanting to use the building as a drug location.”
Pilot
The agreement also offers benefits to real estate owners who are willing to cooperate. When a cannabis plantation or drug lab is discovered in a business premises, this can lead to the closure of the premises for a period of three to six months. Pieter Veeter emphasizes the financial consequences: “All this time you receive no income from your property, and moreover, a stain remains on your property. However, if you participate in our covenant and adhere to the agreements we make with you, in principle you no longer have to close your property.”
The pilot of this initiative will start on the De Oude Veiling, Westfrisia and Zevenhuis industrial estates and will last two years. Although expansion to all industrial estates is not currently feasible in terms of capacity, the municipality and Park Management hope to send a clear signal that Hoorn is serious about keeping drug crime out of the municipality. Owners and landlords of real estate on other industrial estates who are interested in the pilot are encouraged to register with the municipality.