Ronald van de Krogt lives on Kromme Nieuwegracht and his basement is about to collapse. “I’d rather not go into the basement, because pieces of the ceiling have also come down in the past.” He had the basement waterproofed 25 years ago, but now the cracks are everywhere again. “Suppose a helicopter lands on your roof every day and it eventually damages the roof. Then as a helicopter pilot you should not say: do you want to pay for the repair of the roof. No, then you say: very sorry, we will pay for the damage to your roof.” According to Van de Krogt, this is where the crux lies. The municipality owns the outer wall and it no longer has a foundation, so the rest of his basement is damaged, he says.
Recovery of wharf cellars in Utrecht is difficult, residents call conversations with the municipality ‘pointless’
