De Houttuin

Six apartment buildings providing a total of 265 homes will be created on the site of the former FNV building in Woerden, located within walking distance of the historic town centre. Karres en Brands designed the urban development plan, the landscape design, and the public space.

In collaboration with BAM, GroenWest, Groosman Architecten, and A3 Architecten, we set out a feasible plan in a metropolitan setting in a very short space of time. This plan was awarded the ‘100-day housing challenge’ by Utrecht’s provincial government. In total, the district will have 82 social housing units and 183 mid-market rental and owner-occupied housing units. The ambitious plan contains ways of transforming monotonous, industrial sites by integrating them into new urban residential and working areas.

‘De Houttuin’ will be designed as an urban campus with lively public spaces between the residential blocks. The buildings’ positioning within an intricate urban landscape creates a green city campus with striking sight lines as well as themed outdoor spaces of various sizes that encourage meeting. The parking solution – a mobility hub – is crucial, as it removes cars from the public space while helping to generate energy for the district.