In the last episode of the year, Jim, normally the host of the podcast, joins Irma himself. It becomes a personal conversation about decades of living in the Nieuwmarkt neighbourhood, where cafés, streets and neighbourhood views have shaped him all this time. According to him, his regular spot at ’t Loosje, with a Duvel and a view of the whole square, says it all: “If you sit around long enough, everyone will recognise you.” That natural connection to the neighbourhood runs like a thread through his story.
From film school to The Bulldog
After studying at the film academy, Jim ended up at The Bulldog by chance, where he has now worked for thirty years. What was meant to be a six-month project became a career he still enjoys pursuing. He sees himself less as a hotel manager and more as someone who directs a show. “Sometimes it feels like I work in a circus,” he says. The whole world comes in, travellers, young people, neighbours, and through them, Jim keeps rediscovering the city. That vibrancy has kept him in the same place for three decades.
Neighbourhood engagement
Over the years, Jim became increasingly active in the neighbourhood. On the board of BIZ Burgwallen, he seeks dialogue with the municipality on closing times, liveability, catering and safety. Not by clashing, but by talking. As chairman of Stichting Nieuwmarkt, he works to create a positive and realistic image of the neighbourhood through stories, projects and this podcast. According to Jim, the neighbourhood becomes stronger when residents and entrepreneurs take the initiative themselves.
Corona time
The corona period marked an unexpected turning point. With empty streets and unprecedented silence, space for meeting emerged. Neighbours saw each other again, started talking and made the neighbourhood their own, literally and figuratively. For Jim, that period proved that change comes from within. Not by waiting, but by doing together: cleaning up together, thinking together and building together a neighbourhood where everyone can feel at home.
Future: tourism, balance and humour
Of course tourism passes by, a theme that is always present in the Nieuwmarkt neighbourhood. Jim remains level-headed: tourism will not disappear, but our attitude may change. “Don't shout at someone with a city map. Just help them.” According to him, the solution lies not in chasing away, but in better handling of crowds and good cooperation. Only then will the Nieuwmarkt remain a place that lives.
A wish for the new year
At the end of the episode, Jim shares a message that fits him exactly:
“Be a bit nice. Especially to someone you don't know yet.”
Previous episode
Last time, Jim and Irma spoke to Henk de Vries, founder of The Bulldog. He talked about his childhood on the Zeedijk, the early years of his coffee shop and the principles that kept him going for half a century. A raw and honest story and a nice contrast to this episode, in which Jim himself looks back on his own life in the same neighbourhood.
