The Schiedam Windmills Foundation has not only set itself the task of maintaining and managing the windmills. It is also actively involved in developments in the surrounding area. (The area surrounding each windmill is known as “windmill biotope”.)

The five windmills in the town-centre are situated on the Westvest, Vellevest and Noordvest. This route is also called the windmill route. Ideas for an attractive route are summarised in a report on the image of the windmill route, written by the Foundation.

The Schiedam Windmills Foundation preserves the windmills with great care. It is important that they not only turn their sails, but also grind. In order to do this the sails have to catch enough wind. However, tall buildings in the surrounding area obstruct the wind from blowing freely on the sails. The Schiedam Windmills Foundation together with the Schiedam city council have realized that a policy on building and planting (trees) in the vicinity of the windmills is of vital importance. This policy is known as the Schiedam Windmill Policy. In recent times there are good examples of modern building plans which have taken into account the fact that the sails of windmills must catch sufficient wind and have adapted their design to the specific surroundings of the windmills.