The Municipality of Groningen is aiming at having 400 additional emergency shelter rooms for students in Zernike in 2023, reported Dagblad van het Noorden.
A municipal spokesperson revealed that the intention is to keep building units in Zernike for ten years, to keep up with the demand and not be surprised by peak housing crisis every fall: “That means that it will be regular housing that can be double occupied during the peak period”, they told Dagblad van het Noorden.
In addition to the temporary emergency shelter, the municipality wants to build permanent student housing in Zernike. For now, 1,000 units are planned up to 2025, according to the same municipal spokesperson, including the Vrydema tower.
Last week, alderman Roeland van der Schaaf from PvdA declared that this summer the municipality will not make available more than 260 extra places for students and that there will be no tents and emergency dormitories.
Van der Schaaf also stated that the municipality of Groningen, together with the University of Groningen and the Hanze University of Applied Sciences want to send a clear message to students that the housing market is full, especially with the arrival of Ukrainian refugees earlier this year.
“Students need to understand one thing well. If you are unsure about your accommodation, don’t come, because you will ruin your study time”, concluded van der Schaaf.
