Camera surveillance is needed to tackle the problems in Oud Woensel, reports the Dutch daily newspaper, Eindhovens Dagblad.
This is part of the Eindhoven municipality’s action plan to combat issues like drug abuse and crime in the area. The council wants to stop the endless nuisance of loitering youngsters on the Woenselse Markt. They want to use cameras for this.
The police can’t be active at that location all day long. Camera surveillance can help them react quickly to new disturbances. These monitoring devices will be installed and will remain in place until 31 October.
Serious problems in area
The council is devising an action plan, they said in March. They want to present it soon. It has to address the problems in Oud Woensel. An earlier report showed that there are serious issues in that neighbourhood.
It especially concerns Kruisstraat and Woenselse Markt. There is a lot of criminality, drug nuisance and slum lords. Residents and business owners are fed up with the situation. Local politicians, too, feel that something must be done.
They complain about unsafety and nuisance from addicts. There’s also a limited variety of shops and speeding cars. The Municipal Board admits that an approach is needed and that they need to put their own house in order.
“All all fairness, we dropped the ball,” says a council representative. The city council, therefore, wants to ensure that the shops and eateries should be more diverse. And they want to ward off dishonest business people and support the honest ones.
Shelters
The area’s homeless and addict shelters in the area also need to be better distributed or reduced. Residents have been unhappy with this for years. The municipality also wants to improve the neighbourhood’s quality of life.
They want to deploy more enforcement officers and investigate the traffic situation in Kruisstraat.
‘Kruisstraat and Woenselse Markt is a unique area. It has a long, great history where small stores and craftsmanship were central. This area has potential,” says a council representative.
“It can become a multifunctional, friendly city street again. Somewhere where people from all cultures can meet up. In a village atmosphere with an urban character.”
Source: Studio040
Translator: Melinda Walraven
