11 parties file objection to Soestdijk zoning plan

Eleven parties have filed objections with the Council of State against the redevelopment plans of Soestdijk Palace. The city council of Baarn approved the new zoning plan in February. This allows the commercial owner, the MeyerBergman Erfgoed Groep, to further develop their plans.

The new owner wants to build catering facilities, a hotel, and luxury apartment buildings on the estate of the former residential palace of Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard. They also wish to organize even more events on the land.

Local residents and nature organizations believe that the construction of the nearly one hundred homes on the estate would alter its’ special nature and want the highest administrative court to stop it. Moreover, they feel ignored by the Baarn city council and hope the Council of State will be an audience for their concerns. Soestdijk Palace is a heritage of national importance, according to many critics.

Soestdijk is part of the Netherlands Nature Network (NNN). Nature must not be harmed in this network. As it has been very quiet in the woods around the palace for a long time, all kinds of special species live there, such as grass snakes, long-eared owls, and badgers. The protective measures drawn up for flora and fauna are not good enough, according to the objectors. The calculation of nitrogen emissions and environmental nuisance due to habitation is also incorrect, say Natuurmonumenten, the Utrecht Nature and Environment Federation, and Het Utrechts Landschap.