Chill spot youth Oostvoorne

To give young people in Oostvoorne their own place where they can congregate, the municipality is looking for a suitable location. Young people themselves, but also police, enforcement and youth work have been asking for such a chill spot for some time.
This chill spot is intended for young people who just want to meet friends after school, for example. And emphatically not for young people who cause trouble. For these young people we have a different approach, such as more intensive supervision and enforcement and neighborhood bans. Together with the police we also have conversations with these young people and their parents and offer them support where necessary.

Newsletter chill spot Oostvoorne

Chill spot skate park at Swan Lake 

After a careful process involving residents, youth, police, enforcement and youth work, the skate park near Swan Lake emerged as the best suitable location. The location best fits the criteria we collected with the survey of residents and youth, such as not too close to houses, good accessibility and in the village area. In addition to these criteria, we also considered the zoning plan, ownership of the land and how a chill spot fits in with the surroundings.

Thinking about final location chill spot

We asked residents and young people, as well as police, enforcement and youth work, to help think about the criteria for a location. What should the location meet? Should it be an indoor or outdoor location? Which location do residents find suitable? Between March 17 and April 7, residents and young people could contribute their ideas by filling out an online questionnaire. We distributed two questionnaires: one regular questionnaire for residents of Oostvoorne and one specifically aimed at younger residents up to 21 years of age. A total of 136 residents completed the regular questionnaire and 30 young people completed the youth version. Below you can read the main results of the survey. 

On March 20, during a meeting, which was also attended by Mayor Scheepers, young people were able to give their opinions on what they think is important for a chill spot and what they think is a good location. A meeting was also held with police, enforcement and youth work about the chill spot.

On May 28, residents could discuss their ideas and thoughts about the location of this chill spot with us during a walk-in meeting at Cultural Center the Man in Oostvoorne. Various topics were discussed, such as safety and criteria for the location to be chosen. 

Results survey of residents and youth

Below are the main results of the surveys completed by residents and youth.

Those completing the questionnaire, who indicated so, have been sent the report through the research office. You can request the full report by calling our customer contact center at 14 0181 or by emailing nl 

You can download a summary of the survey results at the bottom of this page.

Young people strongly in favor of a chill spot, other fillers moderately enthusiastic

The majority of young people are positive about creating a chill spot for young people in Oostvoorne. For example, they think it is a good idea because there are few other places for young people in Oostvoorne and they think it would be nice to have a place to get together with others. 

Among the fillers of the regular questionnaire, a majority is also in favor of a chill spot for young people, although they are slightly less outspokenly positive. On the one hand, some of them think that a chill area would create less nuisance and that it would be good for young people to meet each other. On the other hand, there are also respondents who think that the chill spot will cause nuisance. They also think that alcohol or drug use will take place in the chill area.

Criteria for location differences

The fillers of the regular questionnaire find it especially important that the chill spot be at a location where it causes as little nuisance as possible. They also consider the safety of the chill area, for example by means of good lighting, important. For young people it is especially important that the chill spot is easy to reach. The groups also differ on whether they prefer a place inside or outside. For the respondents of the regular questionnaire, the preference is for a place inside, where there is better supervision and less noise pollution. For young people, on the other hand, they prefer a place outside. However, they would like this place to be far enough away from homes that they will not cause any nuisance and that neighbors will not complain.

What happened to resident and youth input?

We used the results of the questionnaire and the input at the meetings to find a suitable location for a chill spot. Everyone was able to contribute ideas, but that does not mean that everyone was always satisfied with the outcome. There may be different or even opposing wishes or interests. It is up to the municipality to ultimately weigh in all those interests.

What is the next step?

Neighbors were informed of the location of the chill spot through a letter sent by mail on July 9. Other interested parties have been informed through our digital newsletter and municipal notices in local newspapers July 16.

The municipality wants to make Swan Lake a safe meeting place, trying to take into account the interests and preferences of local residents and young people as much as possible. Therefore, in September and October, we will be talking with young people and local residents about concerns that may exist and the design of the chill spot.

Chill spot part of broader youth approach

The chill spot for young people is part of the broader youth approach in Oostvoorne. There is not much for young people to do in Oostvoorne. The chill spot should become a safe and pleasant place for young people to get together with friends. 

So the chill spot is emphatically not intended for nuisance youth. We have a different approach for that. This includes measures such as more police presence and enforcement, a walk-in clinic of police and enforcement and the issuing of district bans for youths who cause nuisance.
 

Do you have questions about the chill spot in Oostvoorne?

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If you have any questions, please email nl attn project leader Fraukje Harder.

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Summary research results chill spot Oostvoorne