Bellingwedde

Bellingwedde
Municipality

Flag
Coat of arms
Highlighted position of Bellingwedde in a municipal map of Groningen
Location of Bellingwedde (green) in Groningen (dark grey) and the Netherlands (grey)
Coordinates: 53°7′N 7°9′E / 53.117°N 7.150°E / 53.117; 7.150Coordinates: 53°7′N 7°9′E / 53.117°N 7.150°E / 53.117; 7.150
Country Netherlands
Province Groningen
Established 1 January 1968
Government[1]
 • Body Municipal council
 • Mayor Janneke Snijder-Hazelhoff (acting) (VVD)
 • Aldermen
Area[2]
 • Total 110.08 km2 (42.50 sq mi)
 • Land 108.39 km2 (41.85 sq mi)
 • Water 1.69 km2 (0.65 sq mi)
Elevation[3] 1 m (3 ft)
Population (2014)[4]
 • Total 9,039
 • Density 83/km2 (210/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postcode 9566, 9695–9699
Area code 0597
Website www.bellingwedde.nl

Bellingwedde (Dutch pronunciation: [ˌbɛlɪŋˈʋɛdə]) is a municipality with a population of 9,039 in the province Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. It contains the villages Bellingwolde, Blijham, Oudeschans, Veelerveen, Vriescheloo, and Wedde. The acting mayor of Bellingwedde is Janneke Snijder-Hazelhoff (VVD) and the aldermen are Lea van der Tuin (CDA) and Jannes Buiter (PBB).

The four major roads in Bellingwedde are N367, N368, N969, and N973. Bus services are connecting the villages to the surrounding municipalities.

Etymology

The name Bellingwedde is a contraction of Bellingwolde and Wedde, which are the names of the two municipalities that were merged in 1968 to form Bellingwedde. At the time, three names were being considered for the new municipality: Bellingewedde as proposed by the province of Groningen, Bellingwolde-Wedde as proposed by the municipal council of Bellingwolde, and Bellingwedde as proposed by the municipal council of Wedde. The province selected the last option, which was eventually also accepted by the municipal council of Bellingwolde.[5]

History

On 1 September 1968, the municipality Bellingwedde was formed by merging the municipalities of Bellingwolde and Wedde.[6]

Henk Eijsink of the Labour Party, who was the last mayor of Bellingwolde, became the first mayor of Bellingwedde in 1968–1970.[7] He was followed by Jurjen Jan Hoeksema (1970–1978),[8] Engbert Drenth (1979–2007),[9] and Erik Triemstra (2007–2013). Since 2013, Janneke Snijder-Hazelhoff of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy is mayor of Bellingwedde.

Geography

Topographic map of Bellingwedde, June 2015

Bellingwedde is located at 53°7′N 7°9′E / 53.117°N 7.150°E / 53.117; 7.150 in the east of the province of Groningen, in the northeast of the Netherlands on the border with Germany. It is in the south of the region of Oldambt and in the north of the region of Westerwolde.

Bellingwedde is bordered by the Dutch municipalities of Oldambt (in the north), Pekela (west), Stadskanaal (south-west), and Vlagtwedde (south), and by the German municipalities of Rhede (south-east) and Bunde (north-east). The nearest city is Winschoten.

The municipality contains the villages Bellingwolde, Blijham, Oudeschans, Veelerveen, Vriescheloo, and Wedde. It also contains the hamlets Den Ham, Klein-Ulsda, Rhederbrug, and Wedderveer.[10]

The north border of the municipality follows the river Pekel Aa. The river Westerwoldse Aa crosses the east of Bellingwedde from south to north. The canal B.L. Tijdenskanaal, that unites the Mussel-Aa-kanaal and the Ruiten-Aa-kanaal in the south, crosses the west of Bellingwedde from south to north.

Demographics

Population pyramid (2008)

As of 2014, Bellingwedde has a population of 9,039 and a population density of 83/km2 (210/sq mi).[2][4]

Government

A municipal government in the Netherlands consists of the executive college of the mayor and aldermen and the elected municipal council. The municipal building is located at the Hoofdweg in Wedde.[11]

The municipal council consists of 13 elected members. The 2010 municipal elections had a turnout of 56.38% in Bellingwedde. As a result of the elections, the national Labour Party (PvdA) and the local Plaatselijk Belang Bellingwedde (PBB) became the two largest parties in the municipal council, with three seats each. The national parties Socialist Party (SP), People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), and Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) have each two seats, and GreenLeft (GL) has one seat.[12]

The current appointed mayor (acting) is Janneke Snijder-Hazelhoff (VVD) and the aldermen are Lea van der Tuin (CDA) and Jannes Buiter (PBB).[13] The college of the mayor and aldermen in Bellingwedde was formed after the 2010 elections and started as a coalition between Christian Democratic Appeal, GreenLeft, and Plaatselijk Belang Bellingwedde. In August 2013, alderman Marja Bos resigned and as a result GreenLeft left the coalition.[14] In November 2013, mayor Erik Triemstra (CDA) left at the end of his six-year term.[15] Although the PvdA had the most votes, it is not part of the local coalition.[12]

2010 municipal election[12]

 
Parties Votes % +/- Seats +/-
Labour Party 1,027 24.35 -12.94 3 -2
Plaatselijk Belang Bellingwedde 851 20.18 -6.15 3 0
Socialist Party 788 18.69 +18.69 2 +2
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 603 14.30 +3.02 2 +1
Christian Democratic Appeal 537 12.73 -0.87 2 0
GreenLeft 411 9.75 -1.75 1 -1
Total 4,217 100% 13

In the 2014 municipal elections the turnout in Bellingwedde was 57.56% with 4,191 valid votes. The SP had the most votes (1,116), followed by the PvdA (851), CDA (572), and VVD (533).[16]

Mayors

Henk Eijsink was the first mayor of Bellingwedde from 1968 to 1970

The (acting) mayors of Bellingwedde since the formation of the municipality:

International relations

Bellingwedde is twinned with:

Attractions

Museum de Oude Wolden in Bellingwolde
Wedderborg in Wedde

Two villages have a state protected village area (Dutch: beschermd dorpsgezicht), Oudeschans since 1991 and Bellingwolde since 2009.[20]

There are two museums in Bellingwedde.[21] Museum de Oude Wolden in Bellingwolde is a regional museum about the art and history of Oldambt and Westerwolde. It has temporary exhibitions and a permanent exhibition with paintings of Lodewijk Bruckman from the municipal collection of Bellingwedde.[22] Vestingmuseum Oudeschans in Oudeschans is a history museum about the fortification of Oudeschans. It has a collection of archaeological findings from the 17th and 18th century on display.[23]

There are five windmills in the municipality: De Korenbloem in Vriescheloo,[24] Niemans Molen in Veelerveen,[25] Spinnenkop Wedderveer in Wedderveer,[26] Veldkamps Meuln in Bellingwolde,[27] and Weddermarke in Wedde.[28]

The Wedderborg is a borg, a type of castle from the province of Groningen, in Wedde. The building has 14th, 15th, and 16th-century elements[29] and is currently used as a hotel and restaurant.[30]

Transportation

Roads

The location of the N368 in the province of Groningen

There are no highways in Bellingwedde. The nearest highway is the A7 (E22) directly north of the municipality and which is connected to Groningen in the west and Leer (Germany) in the east; its nearest access point is exit 48 (Oudeschans).

There are four provincial roads in the municipality. In the northwest, the N367 connects the municipality to Winschoten and Oude and Nieuwe Pekela. The N368 runs from northwest to southwest, connects Blijham via Wedde to Vlagtwedde, and also connects to the other three major roads. The N969 runs from west to southeast and connects Blijham via Bellingwolde and Rhederbrug to Rhede in Germany. And the N973 runs from southwest to the center and connects Wedde via Vriescheloo to Bellingwolde.

Public transport

There are also no railways in Bellingwedde. The nearest railway stations are Winschoten and Bad Nieuweschans on the Harlingen–Nieuweschans railway just north of Bellingwedde. The railway is connected to the Groningen railway station and the rest of the Dutch railway network in the west and to the Leer railway station and the German railway network in the east.

The bus lines passing through Bellingwedde are exploited by Qbuzz (places in Bellingwedde are in italics):[31][32][33]

Media

Het Streekblad is a free door-to-door weekly newspaper in the municipalities of Bellingwedde, Oldambt, and Pekela.[38] Dagblad van het Noorden is a daily newspaper in the northern provinces of the Netherlands.

Radio Westerwolde is a radio channel in the municipalities of Bellingwedde, Pekela, and Vlagtwedde.[39][40]

References

  1. ↑ "Collegeleden" [Members of the board] (in Dutch). Gemeente. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Kerncijfers wijken en buurten" [Key figures for neighbourhoods]. CBS Statline (in Dutch). CBS. 2 July 2013. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  3. ↑ "Postcodetool for 9698AE". Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland (in Dutch). Het Waterschapshuis. Retrieved 15 January 2014.
  4. 1 2 "Bevolkingsontwikkeling; regio per maand" [Population growth; regions per month]. CBS Statline (in Dutch). CBS. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  5. ↑ (Dutch) Henk Beernink, Zitting 1967-1968-9409, National Library of the Netherlands. Retrieved on 6 January 2014.
  6. ↑ Ad van der Meer & Onno Boonstra, Repertorium van Nederlandse gemeenten 1812-2006, Data Archiving and Networked Services, 2006. Retrieved on 2013-05-20.
  7. ↑ (Dutch) Drs. H.J. Eijsink nieuwe burgemeester Meppel, Nieuwsblad van het Noorden, 1970. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  8. ↑ (Dutch) "Jurjen Jan Hoeksema", Dagblad van het Noorden, 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  9. ↑ (Dutch) Marcel Looden, "Rood en maar drie burgemeesters", Dagblad van het Noorden, 2007. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  10. ↑ (Dutch) Over Bellingwedde, Municipality of Bellingwedde. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.
  11. ↑ (Dutch) Contact, Gemeente Bellingwedde. Retrieved on 2013-06-13.
  12. 1 2 3 (Dutch) Databank Verkiezingsuitslagen, Kiesraad. Retrieved on 2013-06-14.
  13. ↑ (Dutch) Collegeleden, Gemeente Bellingwedde. Retrieved on 7 January 2014.
  14. ↑ (Dutch) Wethouder Bos neemt ontslag in Bellingwedde, RTV Noord, 2013. Retrieved on 7 January 2014.
  15. ↑ (Dutch) Burgemeester Triemstra kondigt vertrek aan, Gemeente Bellingwedde, 2013. Retrieved on 7 January 2014.
  16. ↑ Voorlopige verkiezingsuitslagen gemeente Bellingwedde (19-03-2014), Municipality of Bellingwedde, 2014. Retrieved on 23 March 2014.
  17. 1 2 (Dutch) Partnerschappen, Gemeente Bellingwedde. Retrieved on 2013-06-13.
  18. ↑ (German) Nachbarn und Freunde, SonntagsReport, 2009. Retrieved on 2013-06-13.
  19. ↑ (Polish) Gminy partnerskie, Gmina Nowogród Bobrzański. Retrieved on 2013-06-13.
  20. ↑ (Dutch) Overzicht van aangewezen en in procedure zijnde stads- en dorpsgezichten, Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed, 2013. Retrieved on 13 March 2014.
  21. ↑ (Dutch) Musea en monumenten, Gemeenste Bellingwedde. Retrieved on 11 January 2014.
  22. ↑ (Dutch) Programma, Museum de Oude Wolden. Retrieved on 11 January 2014.
  23. ↑ (Dutch) Vestingmuseum, Vesting Oudeschans. Retrieved on 11 January 2014.
  24. ↑ (Dutch) Monumentnummer: 8924 - De Korenbloem, Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed. Retrieved on 9 May 2014.
  25. ↑ (Dutch) Monumentnummer: 8921, Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed. Retrieved on 9 May 2014.
  26. ↑ (Dutch) Monumentnummer: 388083 - Spinnekop, Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed. Retrieved on 9 May 2014.
  27. ↑ (Dutch) Monumentnummer: 8906, Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed. Retrieved on 9 May 2014.
  28. ↑ (Dutch) Monumentnummer: 8930, Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed. Retrieved on 9 May 2014.
  29. ↑ (Dutch) Monumentnummer: 8925, Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed, 2013. Retrieved on 7 February 2014.
  30. ↑ (Dutch) Burch Wedde, Stichting De Burcht Wedde. Retrieved on 7 February 2014.
  31. ↑ (Dutch) Dienstregeling Openbaar Vervoer 2013, Municipality of Bellingwedde, 2012. Retrieved on 15 November 2014.
  32. ↑ (Dutch) Dienstregeling 2014 Bus, OV Nieuws uit Groningen. Retrieved on 15 November 2014.
  33. ↑ (Dutch) Memo Vastgestelde dienstregeling 2015, OV-bureau Groningen Drenthe, 2014. Retrieved on 15 November 2014.
  34. ↑ (Dutch) Lijn 11 Winschoten Station - Bourtange De Vesting, OV in Nederland.nl, 2014. Retrieved on 16 November 2014.
  35. ↑ (Dutch) Lijn 12 Ringlijn Winschoten Station - Bellingwolde, OV in Nederland.nl, 2014. Retrieved on 16 November 2014.
  36. ↑ (Dutch) Lijn 14 Stadskanaal Busstation - Winschoten Station, OV in Nederland.nl, 2014. Retrieved on 16 November 2014.
  37. ↑ (Dutch) Lijn 811 Bad Nieuweschans Busstation - Vlagtwedde Marke, OV in Nederland.nl, 2014. Retrieved on 16 November 2014.
  38. ↑ (Dutch) Bezorgklachten, Het Streekblad. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  39. ↑ (Dutch) Over ons, Westerwoldeactueel.nl. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  40. ↑ (Dutch) Arjan Brondijk, "Twintig jaar Radio Westerwolde: terugblikken en bluesfeest", Het Streekblad, 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2015.

External links

Neighbouring municipalities
Oldambt Bunde (DE-NI)
Pekela
  Bellingwedde  
Stadskanaal Vlagtwedde Rhede (DE-NI)
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