The historic bridge in the port of Rotterdam is at the heart of a controversy.
It could be partly dismantled so that the Y7 1”, a superyacht built for Jeff Bezos, can return to the sea after its launch.
Not yet confirmed, the project is already dividing the inhabitants.
This is one of the few concrete examples that we have, which show that the more money you have, the more power you have”, indignant Matthias Van der Wilt, a resident of the Dutch city.
"The city said they weren't going to do it first, and now Bezos is offering a nice amount of money and they're going to do it.
It's stupid", adds this young man of 20 years
The ship will be 127m long, making it the largest sailing ship in the world when launched, according to figures released by Boat International.
“On the one hand, the city of Rotterdam has declared that it will never touch the De Hef bridge again, on the other hand, employment is also important for the Oceanco downstream yard in Alblasserdam.
But with this big yacht, it will also create jobs, it's important for this region,” notes another resident, Rene Jongeneel.
The mayor of Rotterdam denies having made a decision
At the beginning of the week, the services of the town hall of Rotterdam told AFP that they had been contacted by the builder of the boat.
The city representative then told the press agency that the city had agreed to have the structure temporarily dismantled at the company's expense.
"It's the only passage to the sea", then assured the official.
On Thursday, the mayor of the city took the opposite view of this statement.
Ahmed Aboutaleb, said Thursday that "no decision has yet been taken, not even a request for a permit" to carry out work on the Koningshaven bridge.
The elected official also made it known that Jeff Bezos' billionaire status would not weigh in on the municipality's final decision.
