Maldegem (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Maldegem rejected ANB’s Drongengoed mobility plan over parking concerns. ANB proposed 110 spots in Aalter, 20 in Maldegem. Mayor De Ceuninck offered 3 alternatives. €420,000 project now cancelled.
As VRT News reported, a disagreement has arisen between the Agency for Nature and Forests and the municipality of Maldegem, in the province of East Flanders, Belgium, concerning traffic limitations and parking facilities near the Drongengoedweg. The Agency suggests closing the Drongengoedweg to cars and constructing 110 new parking spaces in Aalter.
However, only 20 additional spaces are proposed for Maldegem. Maldegem’s mayor and local officials argue that these 20 spaces do not represent a true increase but rather a reclassification of existing public roads already used for parking. They believe this proposal fails to solve the increasing parking demands due to higher visitor numbers.
Why did Maldegem reject ANB’s €420K Drongengoed plan?
Maldegem is offering 3 alternative solutions to the parking problem. The 1st proposal involves expanding the Krakeel parking lot by converting 2 small, unimportant green spaces into additional parking areas. The 2nd suggestion is to utilise a paved area on the military domain, located next to the existing fence, by slightly moving the fence to create more parking spaces.
The 3rd is that the municipality proposes converting an agricultural corner plot opposite Krakeel into a dedicated parking area. Officials mentioned that these proposals aim to improve parking availability without impacting green spaces, supporting the needs of locals and visitors, and addressing potential traffic and safety concerns.
“We think the idea of the road closure itself is a good proposal. It would bring peace to the nature reserve and create a safe cycling and walking connection. All our proposals are technically perfectly feasible, yet they are repeatedly rejected,” says De Ceuninck.
The Agency for Nature and Forests (ANB) is disappointed with Maldegem’s decision to reject the mobility plan for the Drongengoed area. This plan, which the ANB says has been in development for years, involved many consultations. These included discussions with the municipality of Aalter, past leaders of Maldegem, local groups, and even the military. Now that Maldegem said no, the ANB has decided to stop the entire project.
The €350,000 for a new parking lot in Maldegem and €70,000 for prep work will go to other projects in Flanders. No new parking will be built, and the current parking lots in Drongengoed won’t be improved. Plans to stop cars from cutting through the forests, like traffic filters, are cancelled.
The new parking lot in Aalter will still be built. But without Maldegem, the whole plan doesn’t work. The ANB says this is a lost chance to protect nature and help visitors. They say the plan wasn’t to punish drivers, but to provide organised access while protecting the environment in a key natural area of East Flanders.
