Parkplein aan de Eem

TEAM PORTRAIT

VIDEO (by the team)

INTERVIEW
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1. How do you define the main issues of your project in relation with the theme “Re-sourcing”? Re-sourcing thanks to nature, to social dynamics, to new materiality? In which way do you think your project can contribute to an ecological and/or social evolution? And in which way do you think your project can be called a “regenerative project”?
Parkplein aan de Eem is conceived as a project of re-sourcing in the broadest sense: heritage, materials, energy, space, and social life. Rather than demolition and replacement, it proposes urban transformation through reuse, adaptation, and regeneration, addressing ecological and social challenges in Amersfoort. The structurally sound NeNaFa, Van der Meiden, and ROVA buildings are preserved, renovated, and repurposed, acknowledging their intrinsic value and maintaining a tangible link to the site’s industrial history. New volumes are carefully positioned to frame a public space around them. Material reuse reinforces this narrative: demolition artifacts from surrounding industrial buildings are reintegrated into the landscape as paving, creating a “discoverable” park where traces of the past remain visible and meaningful. Energy strategies prioritize passive design, using sunlight and wind to reduce reliance on technical systems, operating costs, and lifetime emissions. Spatially, parking is placed above ground within urban blocks, built with circular, demountable materials. This anticipates reduced car dependency and allows parking structures to be transformed into park extensions over time, ensuring adaptability and resilience. Raised courtyards above parking create shared spaces for residents. Socially, Parkplein functions as the green living room of Kop van Isselt: a generous, multifunctional public space that supports diverse users, activities, and seasonal change, fostering interaction, inclusivity, and shared ownership. By prioritizing people, plants, and animals over cars, the project supports ecological regeneration, biodiversity, and social cohesion. Ultimately, Parkplein aan de Eem proposes a sustainable, adaptable urban future for Amersfoort—rooted in memory, identity, and the material legacy of its past while enabling renewal and long-term resilience.

2. How did the issues of your design and the questions raised by the site mutation meet?
The transformation of Kop van Isselt raised the question of how to densify without erasing history or exhausting resources. The project proposes a hybrid of park and square that connects north and south neighbourhoods, ensures ecological continuity, and reactivates existing buildings, materials, and infrastructures as valuable resources.

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