Category: BAS (en)

The Statenkwartier is a nationally protected cityscape and it is the municipality’s responsibility to protect the quality of the architecture and cityscape from interventions that could detract from it. This usually goes well, but unfortunately not always. In 2025, BAS regularly found it necessary to take action, either on its own initiative or following a tip or request from concerned residents. In the event of illegal construction, we first send a letter to the owner, giving them the opportunity to request legalization or reverse the change. Only if this is unsuccessful does BAS issue an enforcement request. For permit applications that affect the cityscape, we submit a written statement giving our point of view. If such an undesirable permit is granted, the next step is to file an objection with the municipality.

Informing home buyers

To our regret, people who have bought a house in the neighborhood regularly start renovating without the required permit(s). That’s why, in September 2025, we started delivering a letter to buyers of houses in the Statenkwartier, marked as sold on Funda. In this letter, we introduce ourselves, point out the Nationally Protected Cityscape, and emphasize the need to apply for a permit in case of  renovations. We also offer advice on preserving stained glass when installing insulated glazing, and on restoring original details. In 2025, 86 such letters have been delivered.

Stained glass

In two cases, BAS took action against the (potential) disappearance of stained glass. One of the two cases was particularly poignant because the owner of a ground floor apartment wanted to preserve the stained glass in the front room, but the municipality demanded that vertical glazing bars be installed, modeled after those of a neighboring building that is not part of the same building ensemble. An objection to the granted permit did not change the municipality’s position, after which we appealed to the court. During the hearing before the Complaints Committee, the municipality argued that the zoning plan does not stipulate that glass is protected. We disagree on that. Another case concerns the approval of a plan that included the removal of stained glass at the owner’s suggestion. Here too, the objection was rejected, and we appealed to the court. In both cases, the Heritage Association Heemschut sent a letter to the municipality emphasizing the need to protect stained glass.

Lingering issues

A very long-running case is our appeal in 2021 against the granting of a permit for a roof extension at Frederik Hendrikplein 34, which resulted in the demolition of a turret. Vrienden van Den Haag (Friends of The Hague) and SOS Den Haag also filed a joint appeal. Both appeals were heard by the Rotterdam District Court on September 22, 2025. An interim judgment dated October 30 ruled that the permitting authority, the municipality, had insufficiently clarified why the building plan fits within the nationally protected cityscape and that it would not affect the original valuable character of the building or ensemble. Furthermore, there was no evidence that the aesthetic committee considered whether the building plan fits within the broader surroundings that form part of the protected cityscape. The municipality of The Hague was given the opportunity to rectify the identified deficiency, and it took advantage of this opportunity by submitting supplementary reasons to the court in December. BAS, Vrienden van Den Haag and SOS Den Haag responded critically to this. The ruling in this case is expected in 2026.

In 2023, BAS appealed against the plan for a roof extension at Kranenburgweg 12A. Deficiencies were also identified here, and the municipality indicated how it intended to rectify them. The ruling was issued on July 8, 2025. According to the court, the municipality had rectified the identified deficiencies, and therefore BAS’s appeal was rejected. BAS filed an appeal against this ruling with the Council of State on August 17, 2025. The hearing is expected in the second half of 2026.

There’s also good news. In 2020, BAS filed an objection and later appeal against the granting of an environmental permit for a roof extension at Frederik Hendrikplein 30. The roof extension was not built, and the permit has since been withdrawn. Therefore, there will be no roof extension there.

Educational activities

Board member Maarten Ruijters gave the second of two lectures at the Couvéehuis on the architecture and history of the neighborhood, this time focusing on the period from 1945 onward. On August 23, 2025, he guided two architectural tours of the neighborhood as part of the “Art Nouveau Festival – The Hague around 1900.”

Board

In 2025, Marja Langenberg (chair) and Rasmus Geertsema (ordinary member) stepped down from the board.

The pinnacle

The new year started with a big bang: in the beginning of January the pinnacle on the corner of Frederik Hendrikplein 34 ended up in the demolition waste container. In April 2020 BAS initiated a widely supported objection to the granted environmental permit. The neighborhood, local politicians, the press and our ally The Friends of The Hague Association were shocked and angry that this damage to the heart of our State Protected City Scape Statenkwartier was allowed without further ado. The process of filing an objection to the municipality and appealing to the court lasted the entire year 2021 and at the time of writing in 2022 we are still waiting for the final decision by the judge. Unfortunately, the damage has already been done, as the owner quickly made use of the permit to destroy this historic feature before the court rule on our legal objection. The same time line applies to the similar legal process against the planned additional roof storey of Frederik Hendrikplein 30. At this moment we are still waiting for the verdicts.

Action, action

In addition, we took action against about 30 other building plans that conflicted with the State Protected City Scape. The majority of these plans were clearly visible roof structures in landmark places and disturbingly visible roof terraces, as well as a few plastic window frames in otherwise authentic building blocs. We then submitted our expert report to the municipal Monuments and Building Aesthetics Committee, which subsequently issued their negative advice in many cases, partly based on our arguments. Where necessary we also objected to the permits granted – with and without success – or we reported illegal constructions to the municipal enforcement team (Pandbrigade). Praise is due for the Pandbrigade which always took action quickly and decisively. In half of the cases the initiative lay with concerned local residents, the other matters came to light because we keep a close eye on the daily municipal reports.

Advice

The Neighborhood Committee Statenkwartier asked for our advice regarding the replacement of Dick’s Snackcar at Frederik Hendrikplein, another long running and ambiguous affair. We also gave advice to local residents with questions about their own building plans or concerns about the building plans of the neighbors. We submitted two Freedom of Information Act requests, one about the new building planned on top of the Kettenis garage in the Van Beverningkstraat and one about the heavily neglected national monument Huize de Kempenaer, owned by the embassy of Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately the replies to our requests arrived well after the legally required deadline for a respons and provided disappointingly little information.

Local politics

We also looked well beyond the borders of our neighborhood and to the future. Abe van der Werff was the secretary of a joint report of the nine State Protected City Scape neighborhoods in The Hague. This report about our shared problems was presented to Alderman Balster. There will be a follow-up meeting with the Urban Development Department. In the meantime the Municipality has started the consultation process for the forthcoming Environment Act. This Act will have a big impact for all the regulations for municipal planning and building permits. In December BAS took the initiative to draft the joint input for the Environmental Vision (the first step in the Environmental Act) on behalf of the State Protected City Scapes Neighborhoods and The Friends of The Hague Association. We submitted two documents for public participation in January. The start of the new year 2022!

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