Start construction first 165 social housing in Cartesius in Utrecht
With the symbolic drilling of the first pile, Bart van der Vossen (Director Environmental Space of the Municipality of Utrecht) ratified a new chapter for Cartesius Utrecht; the start construction of Okinawa with no less than 165 social rental homes for housing corporation Portaal. At the same time the last pile was symbolically drilled in the monumental CAB for the realization of 246 rental homes by CBRE Investment Management that will rise above the CAB. These two milestones were celebrated with the Cartesius development consortium (MRP and Ballast Nedam Development), housing corporation Portaal, De Tussenvoorziening and CBRE Investment Management, Heddes Bouw & Ontwikkeling and a host of partners. The 411 rental homes are part of the 2nd phase in Cartesius where a total of 770 new homes will be built. The CAB substructure will be developed into the ‘Living Room of the District’, including a supermarket, restaurants, the CAB Lab for research and experiments and many other daily amenities.
Bart Meijer, CEO MRP: ‘We are delighted with these special milestones where we are not only celebrating the final pile of the 246 flats on the CAB from CBRE Investment Management, but also giving the go-ahead for 165 social housing units from housing corporation Portaal. With this, we continue to build Cartesius in Utrecht. A green and healthy urban district in which, by integrating the Cartesius concept inspired by the Blue Zones, we set an example for sustainable urban development. There will be a healthy mix of different housing types, allowing everyone to find a home in Cartesius. Our ambition is therefore to create a place that can be enjoyed by generations.’
From left to right Reinder Jan Spits (Portaal) , Jules van Dam (De Tussenvoorziening), Onno Dwars (Ballast Nedam Development), Bart van der Vossen (Gemeente Utrecht), Kerem Gunaydin (Ballast Nedam Development), Ofer Gilboa (MRP), Paul Oremus (CBRE Investment Management), Paul Trip (MRP), Bart Meijer (MRP), Niels Doodeman (Heddes Bouw & Ontwikkeling). Photography: Pascale van Reijn
Construction Okinawa with first 165 social housing units in Cartesius started
Construction of Okinawa with the first 165 social housing in the Cartesius area development has now started. Okinawa, the name for this building, is a reference to one of the Blue Zones. These are places in the world where people live longer healthy and happy lives, an important source of inspiration for Cartesius Utrecht. Okinawa will house a Mixed Living concept by Portaal. This is a concept of living where residents with and without assisted living consciously choose to live together in an organized setting. Residents in need of guidance receive it from De Tussenvoorziening in order to participate in the society again.
Eelco Eerenberg, alderman of the municipality of Utrecht: ‘I am delighted that we have initiated the start of construction of the first social rental homes in Cartesius. There is a great shortage of social rental housing in Utrecht and by adding Portaal's Mixed Living concept, vulnerable residents can also have a place in Cartesius. In addition, the 246 rental flats on top of the unusual CAB are a huge addition to the city. The recent award of the ZonMW grant through the ambitions of the Building a Healthy Neighborhood Covenant means that an early start can now be made on Building a Healthy Community, Cartesius is also an important example for this for other places in the Netherlands.’
Mixed housing is now an indispensable form of housing to help focus groups such as tenants with assistance, tenants leaving social care or sheltered housing settle into their new home and living environment. Mixed housing also meets the need of regular housing seekers to live in a neighborhood where neighbors are involved with each other. Okinawa will have 36 homes for people with a mental disability receiving 24-hour supervision from De Tussenvoorziening and Abrona, 24 homes for people leaving social care, and the remaining 105 homes are intended for regular social rent for people who want to be a good neighbor. Okinawa was developed by the Cartesius development consortium (MRP and Ballast Nedam Development), designed by EVA Architects and realization is in the hands of Heddes Bouw & Ontwikkeling.
Cartesius Healthy Urban Living
In Cartesius Utrecht, the first Heart of Health area development in the region, the scientific theory of Blue Zones is applied within the city for the first time. The eight pillars of the Cartesius concept are the carriers of the area development. Cartesius has been an international leader from the start. An important part of the urban district is measuring interventions to contribute to a healthy and sustainable living environment and ultimately physical and mental health for people and animals with a greater contribution to the earth. This is done using the hardware and software: community, nature & biodiversity, exercise, relaxation & meaning, sustainability, mobility, environment, and healthy food.
This large-scale healthy urban district, located right by the railway station, will be a green and sustainable urban district with almost 3,000 homes. The World Health Organization (WHO) embraces the development philosophy and recently added the area development to its list of exemplary projects. The partners in the ‘Covenant Building a Healthy Neighborhood’ are currently making preparations to start long-term monitoring of the extent to which the interventions in the living environment at Cartesius Utrecht have an impact on the physical and mental health of residents. At a later stage, this monitoring program can be scaled up to other area developments in the Netherlands. Last year, the Cartesius consortium (MRP and Ballast Nedam Development), the municipality of Utrecht, NS Stations, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht University of Applied Sciences, Utrecht University, housing corporation Portaal, Achmea Real Estate and CBRE Investment Management signed the covenant.
A leading partnership in area development
MRP and Ballast Nedam Development are developing Cartesius Utrecht in collaboration with the Municipality of Utrecht and NS Stations. The urban plan and landscape architecture is by Mecanoo, while the various subareas are under architecture by Mecanoo, Paul de Ruiter Architects and EVA Architects. Realization is in the hands of Heddes Bouw & Ontwikkeling (the CAB, Okinawa, the car park) and Ballast Nedam West (Nicoya, where the sale and construction of the 242 homes is in full swing).
The homes in Cartesius have very low energy consumption. A collective soil energy source and solar panels generate the energy for hot tap water and heating. The suburb is car-free, has a low parking standard and sustainable mobility is a matter of course. Every new resident will receive a free introductory subscription for shared mobility. There will be spacious and comfortable bicycle parking facilities and good cycling and walking paths. Cartesius residents will also receive membership of the Cartesius area association for all kinds of (joint) activities.
Each subarea has a courtyard garden connected to Cartesius Park with beautiful walkways and seating elements for meeting. The courtyard garden is a biotope designed in collaboration with the city ecologist and Mecanoo for landscape architecture. Native plants have been carefully selected to provide privacy for residents and relaxation for passers-by. The green facades are jointly owned to ensure that everything is well maintained. The new CAB, designed by Mecanoo, will be the eye-catcher and identity carrier of Cartesius in Utrecht with functions focused on healthy food, community, exercise, meaning & relaxation. The CAB aims to activate its surroundings so that it becomes an attractive meeting place for residents and visitors. The CAB is therefore called the ‘Living Room of the Neighborhood’. The monumental substructure combined with the ultramodern apartment building above it, aims to become an internationally prominent ensemble.
