Groendreef

The project reinterprets a former spinning mill site as a contemporary park landscape. The masterplan extends the adjacent park structure across the terrain, creating a green, gently undulating environment that functions as both transition and continuation of the surrounding urban fabric.

Buildings are conceived as pavilions placed along meandering paths, recalling the spatial logic of English landscape gardens. The ambition is clear: to create a calm residential setting where landscape, movement and habitation form a coherent whole.

The various housing typologies are distributed across the site and shaped in response to their specific position. All new buildings relate through scale, material and orientation to significant neighbouring structures, including historic villas and park edges.

Two apartment buildings orient themselves towards Park ter Beuken and the Groendreef respectively. Their restrained architectural language allows the nearby Villa ter Dennen to retain its prominence. Ground-based dwellings reference the roofscape and brick tones of the surrounding villas, embedding the development within its historical context.

The core idea is unity in diversity: different building types forming one continuous park landscape.

Twelve dwellings, known as Weverij, share a continuous roof ridge responding to the flowing lines of cycle paths and permeable paving. Twenty-seven dwellings, known as Spinnerij, are positioned as islands within the greenery. Here, distinctions between front and back façades, and between private and collective garden, are deliberately softened. Plot boundaries dissolve into landscape, encouraging flexible use and orientation.

Recreational zones are integrated along the wadi structures, including play areas, seating and informal meeting spaces. The park is designed for residents, visitors and passers-by alike.

The Spinnerij dwellings are conceived as contemporary ruins: monochrome in material expression, with simple yet carefully composed façade openings. Green roofs, inclined façades and alternating cornice heights allow the volumes to merge with the landscape.

Across the site, geometry and massing are calibrated to minimise dominance and reinforce spatial continuity. Robust construction and clear typologies ensure long-term adaptability.

Parking is organised underground and along the access at Groendreef, maximising surface space for pedestrians and cyclists. Homes remain accessible for short-term stopping, balancing convenience with a pedestrian-first approach.

The result is a residential park that privileges greenery, slow movement and collective life.