Save Aan ‘t Verlaat and Abtswoude Bloeit!

In 2015, the SHS (Foundation for Redevelopment into Student Housing Delft), with great inventiveness, began transforming vacant properties into student housing. In doing so, they created 420 housing units spread over three projects (in Dutch), a fantastic contribution to reducing the room shortage in Delft.

Near the Delftse Hout, next to the GGZ (the mental healthcare centre), is the street called Aan ‘t Verlaat. Two projects were completed here in 2015 by the SHS. The former Nurses’ Flat was converted into 150 student rooms after 10 years of standing empty, and the Pavilions Aan ‘t Verlaat were converted into 131 rooms after two years of standing empty (in Dutch). On the other side of town, just beyond the Hoven, SHS worked on the Abtswoude Bloeit! Project. The former Abtswoude nursing home has been home to 110 students since 2018. The same building also houses clients of KesslerPerspektief, elderly people, care workers and Ukrainian refugees.

These are three great projects that made creative use of existing vacant properties. However, the projects are coming to an end. The last students at Aan ‘t Verlaat must leave by summer 2025, and the students at Abtswoude Bloeit! have received notice they must depart by November 2025. This means that nearly 400 students must leave their homes.

The residents have not been informed about what will happen to the properties

The reason given for terminating the housing at Aan ‘t Verlaat is that the permits granted by the municipality of Delft will expire. These permits were issued after the introduction of the Crisis and Recovery Act, a precursor to the Environment and Planning Act. This law allowed municipalities to deviate from the land-use plan for up to 10 years. This let them combat empty buildings and make the best use of existing space. The student houses on Aan ‘t Verlaat were among the first homes created under this law.

We are now 10 years down the road. For Abtswoude bloeit the permit has not expired yet, so there is a chance the lease will be extended. However, this is uncertain. Although the lease terms of the Pavilions Aan ‘t Verlaat have been extended before, they will now definitely come to an end. Residents are already hard at work looking for a new place to live, but student rooms in Delft are not exactly up for grabs. What makes it extra bitter is that the current residents have not been informed about what will now happen to the properties. The eviction notice to the current residents of Aan ‘t Verlaat stated: ‘The property might be given a different purpose with rental to a different target group’. Vague, to say the least.

Removing these locations will only exacerbate the room shortage. The municipality of Delft aims to build an additional 3,500 student houses by 2030, but progress is slow: last year no student houses were delivered (in Dutch). Moreover, some private student houses are disappearing (in Dutch) and in the course of next year, another 375 houses will be renovated by Duwo, leaving them temporarily vacant. To have enough student rooms, more housing should be built, existing student houses kept, and more creative projects that maximize the use of existing space developed.

For now, however, a good step would be to allow students to continue to live at Aan ‘t Verlaat and Abtswoude Bloeit!, at least until more student housing is built or the current buildings get a new function. Extending the permits for Aan ‘t Verlaat and the lease period for Abtswoude bloeit! will ensure that 400 students continue to have a place to live for the next few years. Then, when the time comes for residents to take the last decorations off the ceiling and tear the last posters off the wall, new rooms will be available for them, preferably with a few fun roommates.