Brunssum

Brunssum
Broensem
Municipality

Vijverpark (Pond park) in Brunssum centre

Flag
Coat of arms
Highlighted position of Brunssum in a municipal map of Limburg
Location in Limburg
Coordinates: 50°57′N 5°58′E / 50.950°N 5.967°ECoordinates: 50°57′N 5°58′E / 50.950°N 5.967°E
Country Netherlands
Province Limburg
Government[1]
 • Body Municipal council
 • Mayor Luc Winants (CDA)
Area[2]
 • Total 17.34 km2 (6.70 sq mi)
 • Land 17.21 km2 (6.64 sq mi)
 • Water 0.13 km2 (0.05 sq mi)
Elevation[3] 81 m (266 ft)
Population (May 2014)[4]
 • Total 28,840
 • Density 1,676/km2 (4,340/sq mi)
Demonym Brunssumer
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postcode 6440–6446
Area code 045
Website www.brunssum.nl

Brunssum (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈbrʏnsʏm]; Limburgish: Broensem) is a municipality and a town in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands.

Brunssum was a center of coal mining until 1973.

The municipality of Brunssum has 28,840 residents as of 2014.

Population centres

Brunssumerheide

NATO headquarters

Brunssum is the current home of Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum (JFC Brunssum), a NATO headquarters one level below SHAPE in the integrated military command structure. The headquarters was known as Headquarters, Allied Forces Central Europe (HQ AFCENT) from its inception in Fontainebleau, France and relocation to Brunssum in 1967. The name was changed to Regional Headquarters, Allied Forces Northern Europe (RHQ AFNORTH) when a restructuring in 2000 led to the closing of HQ AFNORTH in Kolsås, Norway. The current title was adopted in 2004 to add flexibility to the military command structure by removing regional restrictions. The main base area, Hendrik Camp, was built on a former coal mine called Hendrik Mine.[5]

Brunssum is also the home of the AFNORTH International School, located just outside of Hendrik Camp. AFNORTH International School is a K-12 school that mainly provides service to American, British, Canadian, and German dependents[6] of military personnel assigned to JFC Brunssum, the US Army base in Schinnen, and NATO Air Base in Geilenkirchen, Germany.

Nature

The Brunssummerheide is a sloping nature landscape with many trails for hiking and running. It is bisected by a brook called Roode Beek (Red Brook). The Brunssumerheide is a protected nature preserve.

Sports

Main article: SV Limburgia

One of the local football teams is BSV Limburgia, formerly known as SV Limburgia, which competes at an amateur level. As SV Limburgia, the club competed in the Eredivisie (Honorary Division) at various times and finished first in 1950. Upon the introduction of professional football in the Netherlands in 1954, SV Limburgia had little success and was relegated to the lowest level of Dutch football, Tweede Divisie (Second Division).

The annual Parelloop ten kilometer road running race is held in Brunssum. Micah Kogo from Kenya won the race in 2009, breaking the world record for that distance.[7]

People from Brunssum

References

Dutch Topographic map of Brunssum, July 2013
  1. ↑ "College en portefeuille" [Members and tasks of the executive board] (in Dutch). Gemeente Brunssum. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  2. ↑ "Kerncijfers wijken en buurten" [Key figures for neighbourhoods]. CBS Statline (in Dutch). CBS. 2 July 2013. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  3. ↑ "Postcodetool for 6444AT". Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland (in Dutch). Het Waterschapshuis. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
  4. ↑ "Bevolkingsontwikkeling; regio per maand" [Population growth; regions per month]. CBS Statline (in Dutch). CBS. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  5. ↑
  6. ↑ "AFNORTH International School - Curriculum". Afnorth-is.com. Retrieved 2012-03-07.
  7. ↑ IAAF, March 29, 2009: Kogo breaks World 10 km record in Brunssum

External links

 Onderbanken Gangelt (DE-NW)
Schinnen Übach-Palenberg (DE-NW)
   Brunssum  
Heerlen Landgraaf