The former Pieter Baan Centrum is a location with an impressive history. For years, the building served as a detention center, where suspects of serious crimes were examined by behavioral experts for a certain period of time. And during the Second World War, resistance heroes were held captive in the barracks on the site. At the time, the namesake of the center had very progressive ideas about preventing criminal behavior. The plans we have developed for this area give the building a new future. A future that stands for openness, connection and growth.
Type of development
Residential
Commercial
Social
Size
- Approx. 15.000 m²
(10.000 m² residential
5.000 m² commercials) - Approx. 130 homes
Website
Partners
Unique combination
The development of this location represents a combination of living, working, relaxing and meeting. In addition to homes, there is also a breeding ground on the site. For start-ups and scale-ups. For freelancers and professionals working in the creative industry. A unique combination that will provide its own dynamics. For a place that is buzzing with energy. A place where people like to come and stay.
The combination of creative breeding ground and homes creates a special dynamic. It will be a place where people like to come and like to be.
A space for everyone
In the future, the site will offer space for private sector homes, medium-priced rental homes, social rental homes and a special housing concept for vulnerable young people. With the supervision and care of professionals, these young people can develop within the community. For example, they can do a social internship at one of the institutions or organizations of the creative breeding ground on the site and some of the residents of the social rental homes have the skills to be a coach for vulnerable young people. This creates a community of which these vulnerable young people are a part and where they receive the support they need to stand on their own two feet step by step. Our ambition goes one step further: in future, together with other parties, we want to create the conditions for these young people to grow towards renting social housing and from that position to support vulnerable young people on their way to independence. This way, a close-knit community is created.
Open up the walls
Until now, everything on the site was aimed to prevent people moving in from the inside out and from the outside in. We will turn this around 180 degrees. The site will invite you to enter it. At the same time, the past of the site is given a prominent place. That is why we leave parts of the wall that encloses the site and give it a different function. It could be anything. For example, a low piece of wall can invite you to sit on and a swing can be hung on a piece of wall in another place. No matter how different the applications are, the past and present will come together on every piece of wall. But the past will also be visible in other ways. For example, there will be plaques with the names of the WWII resistance heroes and the past of the site will be made accessible via QR codes / augmented reality in various places.
Connection
The unique location sits in between two worlds. On the one hand, the city center of Utrecht. A lively city with shops, restaurants and all the activity and vibrancy associated with a large city. On the other hand, there is the peaceful nature of Amelisweerd closeby. We are going to concretize this connecting function by making the site considerably greener and giving it a park-like appearance. With the greening we build on an initiative of the neighborhood to transform the old railway zone into a green cycling and walking zone. Moreover, the former Pieter Baan Centrum is located right on the Kromme Rijn river. A perfect place for recreation, with plenty of room for growth. The development of the former Pieter Baan Centrum will have a positive effect on this.
Plenty of space
A total of eight different courts will be created on the site, each with its own theme. In this way, the vulnerable young people can come to themselves in a courtyard that has the theme of ‘contemplation’. Other courts are more focused on meeting in different forms. For example, there is a court that offers space for sports and a court where residents can work together in a vegetable garden.
HET WAKKERE END
The development of the site and the building has started. Numerous activities are already taking place at the moment and this will increase even further in the coming period, placemaking under the name Het Wakkere End. In consultation with, among others, the neighborhood, we want to further develop the site and the building step by step, on the way to unlocking the full potential.
Helping vulnerable young people to stand on their own two feet. So that they can help other vulnerable young people to stand on their own two feet. This will be the strength of this community.
Roadmap
- Ownership
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december 2022 - Ownership Pieter Baan Cenrum
december 2022KondorWessels Vatsgoed has become the owner of the former Pieter Baan Center