In-between time

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IntErvIEW

of the Site’S repreSentative frAnK AIKEMA, Municipality of aSSen

presentation of the site within the context of the city development and in terms of strategy

assen is a town that grew quickly but, as a result of the crisis, that growth is currently levelling off. the growth was facilitated by developing green residential estates on the outskirts of the town, spacious housing on large plots in green residential areas, with good facilities and pleasant residential environments for large numbers of people. the assen 2030 structure concept provides for a large part of the growth to be accommodated within the existing town. a number of area developments are linked to the florijnas development programme, which will improve assen’s accessibility, in order to take advantage of the investment in infrastructure. transforming industrieweg into an urban boulevard and making the canal navigable again by constructing moveable bridges and locks, and raising the water level in the harbour, will create ideal for the development of havenkwartier.

How can the site be integrated in the issue of the adaptable city and how do you consider this issue?

the town is continuously adapting to the changing urban context around it. it responds by either accommodating or initiating new developments. havenkwartier is an area that has functioned as a mono-functional area within the town since the sixties. today, this mono-functionality no longer meets the needs of the area. Some buildings are run-down, others are vacant and no longer serviceable. they have proved insufficiently adaptable to changing circumstances and demand. although the area functions well economically, its spatial structure needs to be transformed and adapted, to create a new identity so that the area retains its vitality.

At the time of sustainable development coupled to an economic crisis, have you already defined a specific strategy for the urban development of the site?

acupunctural interventions in havenkwartier can “change and blossom” organically to make the area suitable for what is at present partially unknown demand. one thing is certain: it will no longer remain mono-functional – it will become an area with a mix of mutually complementary living, working and recreational functions. Small-scale interventions in the public space and the buildings, or temporary functions, activities and events, will give the area a new image. the winning plan for europan can form the first step in facilitating the creation of a new identity. this approach to development and transformation is partly inspired by the economic situation in which the netherlands finds itself. the traditional approach to urban development is a thing of the past: there are no largescale transformation projects any more, but a more adaptable and gradual approach to developing an area, which maintain spatial and economic vitality. an autonomous, adaptable and continuously transformable organism with a will to survive. for the authorities this means pursuing a strategy of forging coalitions, encouraging and enticing different actors in order to stimulate development, and investing in public space.

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hoofDWeg 4bv 1058 bc aMSterDaM, the netherlanDS t. +31 624171820 info@egbertDeWarle.nl WWW.egbertDeWarle.nl

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the plotS for the project Site in the brief break up the canal anD harbour anD actually reDuce quay by blocking the north SiDe of the harbour one Slab along the quay offerS the SaMe built voluMe aS requireD in the brief, DefineS the canal, forMS a SMall harbour for private yachtS anD aDDS Waterfront for reSiDentS of the builDing

the havenkWartier With the propoSeD builDing anD Several SubSequent StepS

Embrace the present

team point of view the present must be accepted and embraced as the first step in any adaptation process. the proposed building and subsequent steps build on the existing infrastructure and seek to use and re-use materials and buildings on the site. this strategy will strengthen and develop the identity of the havenkwartier. the building is a catalyst for this strategy. the footprint of the brief is reshaped to align with the canal, thus creating a separate marina on the north side of the building. the slab is conceived as a double bridge construction with glass facades in between. the lower deck is level with the water so all units have direct access to the water. the upper deck is used for parking. the building will be sold by the metre so that its growth reflects market interest.

jury point of view the project advances convincing arguments for a single, bold, 260 metre-long building for the intervention area, rather than two as the required by the brief. it is an intervention that is both powerful and respectful of the existing fabric. the building has everything required to act as a catalyst for a series of subsequent interventions. Step-by-step, a new, robust urban environment can develop that suddenly will suddenly make assen attractive for a new group of inhabitants.

vieW through the builDing With on the left the harbour anD on the right the canal anD the quay. the builDing iS the firSt inciSion in the area

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propoSeD 260M long Slab along the quay along the canal actS aS a catalySt for the tranSforMation proceSS of the havenkWartier

StuDio MakS, WeSteWagenStraat 66 3011 at rotterDaM, the netherlanDS t. +31 102133030 info@StuDioMakS.nl WWW.StuDioMakS.nl

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concept DiagraM

Site plan Diana ciufo (it) aSter Sittoni (it) architectS geerte baarS (nl) yihan xiang (cn) kevin WeStervelD (nl) StuDentS in architecture

MaSterplan propoSal

urban nature

team point of view assen municipality and big developers no longer have the resources to redevelop the harbour area top-down. We propose to involve existing landowners and renew the plots grain by grain. as the changes that occur are driven by personal demand rather than economic investment, change is achieved by a quiet accumulation of urban elements rooted in daily life. existing building envelopes will become frameworks for new developments. in addition to this slow grain development, a catalyst project will be proposed in the heart of the harbour, an urban infrastructure, programmatically and spatially rooted in the daily lives of its users. it accommodates housing, offices, floating restaurants and gardens. it gradually grows over time and can thus anticipate the demands of new users and investors.

jury point of view a thorough analysis has led to a fascinating concept in which the waterfront is conceived as a tabula rasa for an initial infill. this should then give the initial impetus for interventions elsewhere in the area, which are understood to be conceived as the counterpart to a tabula rasa, tailored to the existing structure and grain size. because these interventions are selected from more or less autonomous components, the solutions can always be geared to specific situations.

cÉSar Molina DoMínguez (eS) óScar llorente Martínez (eS) Matt SholanDer (uS) alfonSo aracil Sánchez (eS) paula viDal garcía (eS) ariel Minelli (uS) StuDentS in architecture

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Waste?land

team point of view

“give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” We propose a new, smarter way to foster growth and transform havenkwartier into an urban community in assen, through an in-depth analysis of the commodities, industries, and people in the site and the region. this strategy is designed to identify the existing resources and inherent knowledge embedded in the site, to create a community ecosystem that naturally encourages development in the district. our strategy empowers people in the community to shift the role of the citizen in the city from a passive inhabitant to an active participant, and the role of an architect from a designer solely of form to a catalyst that orchestrates and facilitates the evolution of the city.

jury point of view the project focuses on sustainability. assuming that, as time goes on, more and more businesses will leave havenkwartier, the designers have developed a concept for entering the materials from the disused industrial buildings into a catalogue. a community could grow up in the area and reuse these materials to build housing. in addition to a clear presentation of the process on which this is based, the submission addresses a subject of topical interest by pointing out the changing role of the architect.