Mayor Mortensen discusses childcare plans amid zoning concerns in Hoydølum

Temporary structures in Hoydølum were set up as a provisional solution to address overcrowding at the local school, which was linked to an increase in the student population. Although the area is protected and no new construction is permitted, the Area Preservation Board granted temporary permission for the establishment of these barracks to provide extra classrooms.

These structures were positioned on the ground to facilitate easy removal since the site is under environmental protection. When the school relocated to Glasir, the barracks were not dismantled; instead, they were repurposed into a daycare facility that opened in August 2021.

Subsequent exception permits have allowed the barracks to remain in place, with the latest temporary permission contingent on their removal by the end of 2023 or early 2024. However, they continue to be used for the daycare.

Hoydølum is not solely home to this daycare. The entire lower level of the old student school is currently utilized as a temporary facility for the daycare at Ternuryggi.

In May 2023, the mayor, Heðin Mortensen, noted that the municipality’s plan was to continue operations related to childcare in the area after acquiring parts of Hoydølum from the Ministry of Children and Education.

It remains uncertain what the municipality plans to do with the area it purchased last year in a land exchange. The municipality conditioned its purchase on the requirement that the area’s zoning be adjusted to allow for changes, which received a lukewarm response from the Environment Agency, the Forest Conservation Board, and the local preservation committee. The matter is currently under review by the Upper Preservation Board, which has yet to conclude its evaluation. The municipality has temporarily requested that the Upper Preservation Board halt its consideration of the zoning change application, as it questions the necessity of a zoning alteration without specific construction plans in place.