Wageningen politicians agree, it became clear from an initial discussion of the plans in the building committee.
Some of the local residents, at least, are against the housing of students in and around the greenhouse, which is the property of Wageningen UR. The sculpture gallery Het Depot, which is right next door, is worried about students holding barbecues in the Arboretum behind the greenhouse. Het Depot is afraid the students will start treating the park as their back garden, as Het Depot chair Loek Dijkman wrote to the town council.
Developer Van den Brink from Ermelo wants to create 80 apartments in and around the former greenhouse for tropical plants. As well as 41 temporary units in the Herbarium Vadense next door to the greenhouse. Temporary means 10 years in this case. Planning permission has already been granted for the latter project, and construction starts this autumn. According to Dijkman, both plans put too much pressure on the neighbourhood. Dijkman bought the Arboretum from Wageningen UR last year and gave it a complete makeover.