4 minute read
Trends Upgrading our railway station neighborhoods
Norwegian architecture tailored to Roeselare
The Norwegian architectural firm Snøhetta collaborated with local architects for Roelevard's design. This has resulted in a bold design that is set to become a new landmark in the city. www.roelevard.be
Living above the tracks
In the Netherlands, they have gone a step further. They not only want to build around the railway station neighborhood, but also above it. According to Dutch Railways, there are no less than 91,000 square meters of potential development land above Utrecht Central Station. “Although urban land is becoming increasingly scarce, more and more people are still moving to the major cities,” says Roger van Boxtel, CEO of NS (Dutch Railways). “We don't want those cities’ development to stagnate. Constructing beside and above the tracks is a way to keep the momentum going.”
There’s no stopping the railway station projects
Wavering streetlights, dilapidated buildings, and a feeling of uneasiness. A few years ago, that would have been a perfect description of a typical Belgian railway station neighborhood. That negative connotation is in sharp contrast with today’s situation: Flemish railway station neighborhoods have become more popular than ever.
The times of rundown railway station neighborhoods are behind us. Companies are willing to pay high prices for strategically interesting locations, which has not escaped real estate developers. Railway station neighborhoods are increasingly becoming interesting investment projects.
The major turnaround came after a few Flemish cities created a master plan to save their railway station neighborhoods, with car-free squares with abundant greenery, underground car parks and malls, restaurants and shops nearby, etc. The government immediately set an excellent example by establishing their administrative centers in the railway station neighborhoods. Soon after, the private sector also jumped on the bandwagon.
“Not surprisingly,” says Cedric Olivier, Business Unit Manager at ION, “because
This was the Flemish Region’s average for September 2020. A traffic congestion rate of 100 kilometers is the equivalent of 100 kilometers of traffic congestion for 1 hour. There is clearly a need for smart mobility, even during the corona crisis.
The district of the future
Right next to Turnhout railway station, ION is in the process of building Niefhout, an entirely new, future-oriented urban district with apartments, homes, offices, and assisted living apartments. It has extensive indoor gardens throughout the site to provide 20,000 m² of new public spaces. And with De Kempen's first heating network, Niefhout is a pioneer in sustainability.
www.niefhout.be
smooth mobility is still essential. This not only applies to homes but clearly to businesses too. And even though we are teleworking more today, it doesn’t mean that we need to focus less on accessibility. The corona crisis has made many companies think about where they want to go in the future, including their offices. Should we expand or reorganize our offices? Real estate developers can focus on this by offering flexible formulas. Either way, this new concept of teleworking is setting things in motion. I don't think this will be a threat to new office projects in railway station neighborhoods; I see it more as an opportunity.”
The fact that everyone wants offices close to train stations will also mean higher rents. Yet this won’t stop companies. Potential tenants mainly look at the overall costs, such as overhead, location, and mobility. When they do the math, choosing an office building near a railway station is in most cases the logical option.
Olivier's responsibilities include Roelevard, an eye-catching project at the Roeselare railway station that ION is developing together with Steenoven. There will be 6,000 m² of offices and 81 apartments. “This combination of living and working in the same location creates a great ambiance. There are things going night and day, and there’s a great dynamism between the various players at the site.”
This positive evolution has been applied to various Flemish cities. An excellent example of this is Mechelen. With a more than 80 percent growth in office projects, the city is clearly on the rise. The “Mechelen In Beweging” (Mechelen on the move) project will give the railway station neighborhood a full makeover. There will be new railway and bus station buildings, a new railway bypass, a link road, and many new bike and footpaths. A total of 120,000 m² of new office spaces will be built around the station. “A railway often creates a break between different urban districts,” notes Olivier. “Area developments can provide new links. For example, in the design for Roelevard, we also paid a great deal of attention to public spaces. We want to upgrade an existing bicycle tunnel to create a link between the urban districts on both sides of the station. This has always been the starting point of this design. Finally, we will use horizontal and vertical green roofs to give the surrounding area a fresh look.”
