News from Amsterdam


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11/1 Jurists want to stay in Oudemanhuispoort

8/2 Mayor’s portrait

8/2 Websites for social cohesion

7/2 Spreading tourism proceeds with difficulty

7/2 GroenLinks on districts: Be a man

6/2 Zuideramstel opens new office on Sabbath

5/2 The truth about integration

4/2 Wilders has little support on Amsterdam

3/2 Elite involved in neighbourhood

2/2 Johnnie Walker avoids taxes in Amsterdam

1/2 Rotterdam to tinker with district councils as well

31/1 Wooden rowing boats to disappear from Amstel

31/1 ZeeburgTV launched

27/1 Privacy activists to mess up loyalty card system

27/1 A few were still coughing, but that was an act

27/1 Chrisis in de Baarsjes

26/1 Youth have positive view of districts

24/1 Action groups call for Carmel and Jaffa boycott

24/1 PvdA members dismiss plan for districts

23/1 KLM takes on crisis with new uniform

23/1 District office not squatted

21/1 Merge districts

20/1 Closing squat bar Vrankrijk not necessary

20/1 Cleaners welcome new Schiphol director

18/1 Palestine at the Jewish Historical Museum

18/1 What is the right size for a district?

17/1 PvdA Oost against fewer districts

16/1 Committee: 7 districts by 2010

15/1 Soldiers may attend Afghanistan debate after all

15/1 Bait bike leads to arrest

14/1 Youth for Christ to republish vacancies

13/1 Paintings of the Zuidas

13/1 New Youth for Christ contoversy

11/1 Social cohesion initiative raises eyebrows

10/1 Fewer districts in 2010

10/1 Zuidas: People feel that we are losers

9/1 Fun on the ice - but not for all

9/1 Supermarket coupon fraud thwarted

9/1 I Amsterdam must remain exclusive

8/1 Use term Apartheid in every discussion

8/1 No city kiosk in Amsterdam yet

7/1 Snow

7/1 Fatima Elatik to run Zeeburg

7/1 Municipal managers to return to shop floor

4/1 Police: take photo of strange people

3/1 Gaza protest criticises politicians

1/1 Thousands to protest against attacks on Gaza

1/1 Mustapha Laboui leaves district council

 

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Metropole without government

1 December 2007 - Municipalities and provinces have launched a plan to develop an Amsterdam Metropolitan Area (AMA). The development has been presented as ‘governance’ rather than government, raising questions about democratic accountability.

The cities of Amsterdam, Almere and Haarlem and the provinces of Noord-Holland and Flevoland have agreed to market the region as the AMA, since concepts such as Randstad or North Wing have almost zero brand recognition abroad.

In addition, they presented plans to further develop the region into a competitive European metropole. Key elements include the creative industry, Schiphol Airport, integrated public transport and a mix of housing and green areas.

The plans have been developed in consultation with “private parties from Schiphol to real estate agents, nongovernmental organisations from green to social, experts from the Netherlands and abroad”. Such parties will also be involved in the implementation of the plans.

Critics of large-scale urban economic development programmes say that such public-private partnerships are often lacking in democratic accountability and favour corporate interests above the interests of the local community.

As yet, the AMA is little more than a shared vision, although plans are to become more concrete at a conference on 14 December. A spokesperson of the Amsterdam Municipality says there are as yet no plans to create a new democratic layer of government. She says that democratic legitimacy has been guaranteed by regularly informing the city and provincial councils involved about plan development.

Amsterdam Metropolitan Area

 

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