Leidsch Dagblad, Saturday 27 January, 2001. p. 13 (Leiden & Region page)
New Hope for Remains of the Vrouwekerk.
Leiden. ANP (i.e. General Dutch Press Bureau)Translated by Jeremy Bangs, with his comments in [ ] brackets.
The town is going to look into whether the remains of the Church of Our Dear Lady can get a prominent place nonetheless in the rearrangement of the Vrouwekerk Square. Thereby some hope still dawns for the Leiden and American followers of the Pilgrim Fathers who are fiercely opposed to the demolition of the old decrepit wall.
Earlier this week the Council of State rejected an appeal against the demolition permit the city had granted. Thus an end came to a discussion that's gone on for years. Demolition of the wall is a very sensitive matter for the Americans. The Vrouwekerk was in their eyes the church of the Pilgrim Fathers before they dared to make the trip across the sea to America in 1620. Many Americans see them as founders of the American nation.
The decrepit rear wall of the chancel has been an obstacle for the town for years. Seven years ago the town decided definitively to haul the remains away. According to the alderman for monument protection, Pechtold, because of the judicial procedures the original rearrangement plans have in the meantime become outdated. While adjusting these plans, the town will look into whether the recollection of the Vrouwekerk can remain in sight.
[Comment: MAYBE is not enough; and there is no value to an unsigned announcement that merely states that the town is going to LOOK INTO something. Typically, when such a statement is issued here, the end result is that the town announces that having looked into the matter they find that the original decision was correct. That is, obviously, just what the Council of State did.]
- Jeremy Bangs