The Haarlem Municipal Council has made a historic decision, decisively selecting the Egelantier—a monumental nineteenth-century former hospital—as the new, single-site location for the Frans Hals Museum. After an extensive renovation, scheduled for 2030–2032, this relocation will resolve a long-standing need for improved accommodation.

De Egelantier (photo: Gemeente Haarlem)

The Haarlem Municipal Council has formally approved a landmark decision, decisively selecting the Egelantier as the new, single-site location for the Frans Hals Museum, thereby resolving critical long-standing issues concerning the museum’s accommodation. This relocation initiative will be followed by a comprehensive renovation and refurbishment phase, which is currently scheduled to take place between 2030 and 2032.

The current museum setup, operating from two separate, historic buildings at Groot Heiligland and Grote Markt, is not ideal: the buildings are small, inaccessible, unsustainable, and the dual location is inefficient and confusing for visitors.

To address this, three scenarios were investigated:

1.  The museum would remain active at both the Groot Heiligland and Grote Markt locations, requiring the renovation of both properties.
2. The museum would proceed only at the Groot Heiligland location, requiring an underground extension to compensate for the lost square footage from the Grote Markt building.
3. The museum would relocate entirely to the Egelantier.

The Council chose the third option, the Egelantier, located around the corner of the current building at Groot Heiligland, because it emerged as the best choice due to its superior space, logistics, and central location. The Egelantier allows the entire collection to be housed in one place, requires fewer drastic modifications (avoiding the need for an underground extension), and permits the museum to remain open during the estimated five-year renovation process, which is scheduled for 2030–2032. This historic decision aims to make the museum sustainable and fully accessible for future generations.

More information (in Dutch) and an artist impression are available on the museum website.