It won’t come as a surprise that the term crisis was used a lot in 2009. There was some debate about the nature of the crisis: »»
«Municipalities with well-meaning ambitions to become ‘smart’ are surrendering to technology firms and violating privacy laws,» investigative journalist Saskia Naafs recently concluded. Amsterdam would like to be a smart city, but this is hardly a theme in the campaign for the local election on 21 March. »»
The centre of Amsterdam has 177 businesses targeting tourists and shops selling food and drinks for immediate consumption. Those include at least 23 ice-cream parlours, 24 cheese stores and 31 bicycle rentals, according to a list (pdf) published by the Amsterdam Municipality. »»
This weekend, PvdA (social-democrats), SP (socialists) and GroenLinks (green party) have announced a left-wing pact. The parties criticize the ‘worthless’ coalition agreement of the new right-wing national government and opt for a city that is sustainable and characterised by solidarity. At the same time, the pact is an indication that the signatories want to form a coalition after the local election in March 2018. »»
Airbnb is under fire. The platform would harm the liveability of Amsterdam neighbourhoods and drive up house prices. In December last year, Amsterdam and Airbnb signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to deal with abuses. According to Airbnb, the agreement is already bearing fruit. Airbnb thinks Amsterdam should focus its enforcement efforts on other platforms. But Amsterdam wants to introduce a registration requirement for holiday lettings, a measure Airbnb vehemently opposes. »»
