Senzora

The site of the former Senzora factory in Deventer, where the family-owned company produced washing and cleaning products, will soon be transformed into a lively neighbourhood with around 130 apartments and townhouses, ranging from affordable social homes to mansions. Karres en Brands produced the urban development master plan and designed the public space. We also provided an initial glimpse into the architecture of the future neighbourhood. The ambitious plan, which will see its first residents arrive in 2025, was drawn up on behalf of Le Clerq and BPD, in close cooperation with the Municipality of Deventer.
 

With the Senzora master plan, Karres en Brands offers an authentic, yet ambitious and forward-looking response to the transformation and integration of industrial sites into inner cities. The urban structure of the site is determined by the industrial complex and its spatial characteristics. The new Senzora plan brings an extension to the industrial existing complex. 

The former factory is the beating heart of the new district, which houses public services and is surrounded by an intimate neighbourhood square. A characteristic network of narrow streets connects with the surrounding area, offering access to the green waterfront. The historic urban bastion will receive a completely new lease of life as a lush, biodiverse waterfront park that bolsters the development on the canal with a new public promenade for the whole city.

The plan for the new neighbourhood is both resilient and sustainable. The district will be completely car-free, instead emphasising pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. There will be a compact underground car park, leaving a large part of the site to develop natural, green surroundings. The greenery and biodiversity exist in different forms and at all levels in the plan: from the lush promenade along the water to the neighbourhood park and the green islands, to green roofs and facades. Rainwater will be collected, buffered, and stored in the public area, streets, and roofs on site. And materials from the factory buildings demolished will be reused and integrated into the public space.