The young owner nodded.
“That's exactly what I've been trying to explain.”
He leaned forward.
“Do we have a choice?”
She took a breath.
“Yes.”
He studied her.
She continued.
“We may have to negotiate. There may be legal disputes. The development may change the neighborhood in ways we don't control.”
She paused.
“But nobody should assume we've already agreed to surrender property interests we still own.”
The older man looked relieved.
Then asked, “What do you need from me?”
“Copies of your recorded access agreements, if you're comfortable sharing them with counsel.”
He nodded.
“And your correspondence with the developer.”
“I kept everything.”
She smiled.
“Good.”
He laughed.
“Your mother taught me that.”
The young woman looked up.
He continued.
“Years ago, when a landlord tried increasing our rent in a way that didn't match the lease, she told me to keep every letter.”
The young woman's expression softened.
He smiled.
“She said memory is useful, but paper is harder to argue with.”
The young woman laughed.
“That sounds exactly like her.”
The old bookseller nodded.
“Your mother's still helping us, isn't she?”
The young woman looked toward the shelves.
For a moment, she couldn't answer.
Then she smiled through sudden tears.
“Yes.”
“I think she is.”
Within two weeks, five neighboring businesses agreed to share relevant property records through independent legal counsel.
They didn't form a campaign against all development.
They didn't demand that nothing ever change.
Their objective was narrower.
They wanted to understand their existing rights, preserve legitimate access, and ensure that no company could claim consent that hadn't been given.
The group included the bookshop, a café, a florist, a small art-framing studio, and Het Blauwe Huis.
Each business had different needs.
The café depended on reliable early-morning deliveries.
The florist required frequent access for perishable stock.
The framing studio used the passage for receiving large materials.
The bookshop needed occasional deliveries and maintenance access.
And the restaurant relied on the passage for certain service operations while maintaining a separate entrance for most daily deliveries.
The young owner organized a meeting in the restaurant's smaller dining room.
The atmosphere was tense.
Several owners were frightened.
The florist had recently received a letter from a property consultant suggesting the surrounding neighborhood was likely to undergo major redevelopment.
She worried that her lease would not be renewed.
The café owner had heard rumors that street access might be restricted during construction.
The framing studio's manager feared losing customers if the area became an extended building site.
The young woman listened.
Then suggested they separate what they knew from what they feared.