Hollandsche Manege

In 2018, the organisation attracted subsidies from local government entities, including province North Holland, and started crowdfunding for the renovation of the building.

Part of the building is utilised by charitable foundation ‘Het Levend Paardenmuseum’ to promote the general public’s interest in the Hollandsche Manege and its cultural heritage.

To replace it, a new building in neoclassical style was constructed in 1882 at Vondelstraat 140, on the northeastern edge of the Vondelpark, which at that time was frequently used for horse riding.

The plans were scrapped after vocal protests, including a petition by art history students at the University of Amsterdam, who collected over 2,000 signatures against the demolition.

Opponents of the research voiced that Dier & Recht had a certain level of bias since the organisation’s point of view is that horses are not supposed to be kept in city-centre locations at all in modern days.

Their research (including video recordings) showed the management of the riding school paid no attention to these policies, such as not allowing the horses to roam around freely on rotation at night.

[6] In the end, Stadsherstel Amsterdam went ahead with the renovation of the building and maintained the same commercial tenant to continue the riding school function.