On January 30, 2023 the BVJS board wrote the following:
Dear Members,
There have been extensive discussions within the board about the requirements for BVJS membership and therefore, board membership.
After consultation with the lawyer of the BVJS, the board has determined that some members might not qualify as members. This is the result of the definition of membership in the Articles (Article 3), under which only residents and owners of empty plots and houses can be a member as long as they are ‘natural persons.’
Under the current definition in the Articles, not all members that have been registered in the BVJS database over the years qualify as members, which is why the board considers it necessary to change the Articles in this respect. The board will present an amendment in the upcoming ALV, which is now scheduled for Tuesday, April 25th. The BVJS lawyer Thomas Aardenburg will advise us in drafting the amendment and in facilitating the voting process.
As a result, Anthony Smeets did not consider it appropriate to stay on as Chairman while not living in Jan Sofat, and has decided to resign for now. We thank him for all the hard work he has put into his board work since he joined, and are happy that he has agreed to continue to support our board going forward.
Spurgeon Maria, the Secretary of the previous board, has agreed to join the board and will become the new (interim-) Chairman, as per immediately and with the full support of our board (as per Article 12.3 of the BVJS Articles). So, we welcome him in his new position and are very appreciative of his willingness to rejoin the board.
Kind regards,
We, the FAJS responded to the board as follows and regretfully never got an answer and also our request for publication by the board to the same members as their message This was not complied with
Dear board,
We have taken notice of the fact that mr Anthony Smeets, resigned as a member of the board and for that matter as the President. Of course we regret the fact that he can no longer be a board member, but for him it was the right thing to do. We would like to express our gratitude for his hard work and input since he joined.
Having said that, we would like to emphasize that, as we are a “Buurtvereniging” (Neighborhood Association) and not a Vereniging van Eigenaren (Homeowners Association), the existing definition of a “Member” in our Articles of Association is the correct one and should not be changed or adapted. We would like to bring to your attention that the present definition of a member is : Every Resident (not necessarily the owner) is in principle a member of the Buurtvereniging Jan Sofat. This also applies to the Owner/non resident, if it concerns the ownership of a bare parcel of land or/and an empty house.
If you are the “owner” of a property and you live somewhere else, then the resident/tenant is a member of the BVJS (and not you as an owner). The definition of a “member” , since it concerns a Neighborhood Association , is well defined and in our opinion needs no adjustment. (see our note * below). The articles were drafted as is, after thoughtful consideration. Why then the request of the Board of our BVJS to change our Articles of Association (“AoA”)?
Contrary to your comment that “many” members now have a membership issue, this concerns to only a small minority. Please bear in mind that this small group, who has converted the ownership of their house into that of a SPF (Stichting Particulier Fonds) or a so-called Private Foundation, has actually no issue with their membership as long as they (as Ultimate Beneficial Owners or UBO’s) live in Jan Sofat. The problem arises when the property is used for reasons other than being their “residence”.
The result of using the property for STR has two consequences:
* It is against the condition in the perpetual clause of the purchase deed that each plot/house which states that it may only be used as a residence (a house to live in and not to stay in for a short while and
as a result the definition of a “resident” is no longer valid, as “STR” is considered “Stay” and not “Live”.
*Secondly in the case of an SPF as owner of the house, the definition of “owner in person” obviously is no longer applicable.
Best regards
The concerned members united in the Foundation Authentic Jan Sofat
who want to the return of our neighborhood as a solely residential one
where living is safe and a pleasure.
Note: * We, however would like to evaluate how to rephrase the definition of a “member” in that an Owner “Natural Person” (not a legal entity) who does not live in Jan Sofat and has property that is used as a residence by someone else can also be a member.
2 Comments
Allan and Wendy · March 14, 2023 at 4:53 pm
Very well spoken and we totally agree with the FAJS. The main attraction we had for buying our lot was precisely because of the residential quality of Jan Sofat. Hope to see lots more Residents stand up against the breaching of the perpetual clauses .
deanna · March 15, 2023 at 3:12 pm
We very much appreciate your reaction and agree with your wish that more concerned residents react to this negative development of Short Term Residents facilities in our Residential Jan Sofat neighborhood. Therefore we started this Authentic Jan Sofat Foundation. People who support us in our efforts often do not want to “rock the boat” and neither want to openly state that they are at odds with their neighbors’ STR activities. They however do not have to be on the frontline, but by supporting the Foundation they can rest assured that action will be taken soon.