The municipality of Amsterdam has announced that over 10 million euros will be made available to invest in seven so-called green projects across the Dutch capital.
“We are going to make great strides in creating extra greenery and improving and expanding our beautiful parks,” said city alderman Jakob Wedemeijer. By the end of next year, the municipality plans to invest over 26 million euros in Amsterdam’s many parks, planting more trees and improving the overall quality of the city’s green spaces.
“In a big city like Amsterdam, many people enjoy our parks, which are used as communal gardens. We will therefore provide more greenery that is well equipped for intensive use, but also for nature and the animals in the city,” Wedemeijer explained. A total of seven individual projects are set to be backed by the municipality, each one designed to improve a different area of the city and develop a different park.
Some of the parks that are due to be renovated and / or expanded over the coming months include the Martin Luther Kingpark, the Noorderpark, and the Gaasperdammertunnelpark. The Weteringcircuit in the city centre, located near the Heineken Experience Museum, will receive 1,6 million euros and be redeveloped as the Weteringpark, with 40 parking spaces set to be removed and space made for a playground.
The municipality’s announcement comes only two months after a report published by the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area Court of Audit criticised the city for having too few green spaces, arguing that the municipality needed to take further action to “greenify” the Dutch capital. Meanwhile, a recent survey found that the majority of local residents are satisfied with the green spaces on offer in Amsterdam.