'The more diverse the city centre, the more functions, the more life'
Whereas the municipal administration provides policy and preconditions, Venlo Partners mainly deals with executive tasks and all kinds of projects. Director Marcel Tabbers: "We work on the attractiveness and functioning of the city centre. In doing so, we look at the surroundings and are concerned with a clean, complete, safe and green city centre. Furthermore, the focus is on supply. So What is the shopping offer and what is on offer? Also there is a focus on the customer journey involving mobility and marketing. Finally, we focus on mutual cooperation and communication. We So basically we get involved in everything that concerns the city centre, connect the dots and roll up our sleeves in a very concrete way."
'The Inner City Plan 2030 mainly sets out the long-term vision: where do we want the centre to go'
Attractive overall package
A modern city centre offers an attractive overall package, where living, working, shopping experience, culture, education, and food and drink are among the essential ingredients. Venlo has incorporated its vision of the future in the Plan Binnenstad 2030. "In it, we are making the move from place to buy to place to be," Tabbers stressed. "The city centre had purely a buying function in the past. That is no longer today's reality. There are several reasons for this. Consider online purchases, the corona period and the overall change in the shopping landscape. People no longer go to a city centre just to shop; they also look for entertainment. So: meeting, culture, events, plenty of eating and drinking places. How more diverse the city centre, the more function, the more life. But then you also have to think about the decor: greening, attention to history and lighting, for example. Incidentally, Venlo is not unique in this; every city centre is currently reinventing itself."
Housing has become a more important issue in recent years. Tabbers is happy that the number of residents in the centre has been increasing again in recent years. "We see that property owners have become more active. Both in developing housing over shops, but also in renovating historical properties."
Downtown plan 2030
The Inner City Plan 2030 mainly presents the long-term vision. Central to it is the question: where do we want to take the city centre? Tabbers: "When I started at Venlo Partners, that was the first question I asked. A clear strategic vision is essential to do the right things together. This resulted in property owners, entrepreneurs and the municipality developing a joint picture of the future plus a concrete plan of action. This includes a focus on transformation, appearance and quality of stay for visitors, residents and entrepreneurs."
Other city districts
Besides city management for the municipality, the Venlo Partners team also focuses on city marketing; promotion of the entire municipality towards various target groups with campaigns and projects. "A attractive city centre is one, but the other parts of the city are also important. Think of tourist pearls like monastery village Steyl and Arcen. This are very popular destinations for locals and tourists alike. We promote these districts and the tourist offer through our Venloverwelkomt channels, both in the Netherlands and in Germany. We also developed an heirloom gold route for Arcen and Tegelen this year. With the centre managers of Tegelen and Blerick, we regularly consult on housing and shopping developments and work together on a project basis." (See article on Tegelen centre plan later in this edition, ed.).
Contact Entrepreneurial Venlo
Venlo Partners is a member of Ondernemend Venlo and keeps a close eye on developments in the business parks "I think we need each other. The business parks benefit from an attractive city centre and for the city centre, entrepreneurs and their employees matter. What to me, the city centre can be used even more as a stage for the whole municipality. The city centre as a showcase for city logistics; I can see that. Fortunately, the big companies have joined the process to come up with a new city branding strategy. The Municipality and Venlo Partners are jointly pulling that cart."
'Business parks benefit from an attractive city centre and for the city centre, entrepreneurs and their employees matter'
"Incidentally, for us the role of education is also essential. The Maastricht University (UM) and HAS Green Academy are located in the city centre. Fontys University of Applied Sciences and Gilde Opleidingen bivouac on the edge of the city centre. And some students like to live close to their educational institution and facilities," Tabbers knows. "That aspect contributes to vibrancy. Moreover, there can be a nice interaction between businesses and schools, benefiting both the city centre and the entire municipality. A So good example of a real win-win situation for multiple parties."
Photo: The Venlo Partners team, flnr: Nanet Hazenbosch, Marcel Tabbers, Kristina Peeters, Annemiek Breuer and Jules Backes
Text: Rob Buchholz - Photography: Bram Becks
