The Groningen village of Ganzedijk, which was threatened with being bulldozed earlier this year, wants to regain its reputation by becoming a CO2-neutral limited company, owned by its residents, the Volkskrant reports on Thursday.

In February local officials said there were so many empty houses in Ganzedijk and the village was so deprived that it should be demolished and the land returned to nature.
Now, after months of meetings, debate and research, residents have published plans to save their village, the paper says.
This involves turning the village into a limited company, with the residents as its shareholders. They will renovate their own homes and draw up rules for behaviour.
CO2 neutral village
The company will also generate electricity so the village can be CO2 neutral.
And, to draw in visitors, Ganzedijk, which has just 60 houses, wants to set up a pancake restaurant and a hotel with conference centre which can also function as a village hall.
The plan has the backing of several local officials and Groningen University professor Gert de Roo has praised residents’ creativity.
Now it is up to the local and provincial councils and the housing corporation which owns most the houses to give its verdict, the paper says.