Veld 26 Langerak, Leidsche Rijn Utrecht • 1996 - 2001
11 apartments and 96 single-family dwellings
Client: Bouwfonds-Fortis Vastgoedontwikkeling

With its elongated form, Veld 26 (Field 26) comprises the largest area of Langerak, which is the first subsector in the urban development plan for the Leidsche Rijn in Utrecht. The boundaries and conditions of this area differ at the peripheries. On the east side, the access road has an influence on the parcelling of the ground. The west side is dominated by the openness of the undeveloped agricultural land. Despite the limited width of the area, the decision has been taken to orient the housing blocks in a north-south direction in order to create an image of continuous construction along the access road, The buildings are traversed by zones that are either public or semi-public. In this way, a strict rhythm of small independent volumes is created, giving the cross-zones a specific quality.
By occasionally omitting two blocks, a collective space with a courtyard-like ambience is created. This space opens up to the undeveloped land and is screened off from the road by  a small block. Seven housing blocks are grouped around the collective space that also accommodates the parking facilities. The pedestrian paths that give access to the houses also issue on to this space.
Three types of housing blocks are applied, and the difference in height breaches the austere rhythm of the volumes. Accordingly, all kinds of cross-sections in the plan are generated, while a repetition of the block types enables a certain recognizability within the plan. Gardens adjoin the buildings on all sides, so that the quarter acquires the ambience of an urban village with a very green character. It seems as if the blocks are located on a green plateau, as it were. Using green areas to mark the boundaries between public and private is an integral component of the design. Much attention was devoted to this aspect in both the design and the management stages.
On the ground floor, all kinds of added elements – storage areas, property partitions, niches, etc. – will ensure that the housing blocks are securely embedded in the living environment at ground level. This process will be reinforced by treating the façades in such a way that the buildings have an all-round character.
The small scale of the blocks and the preferred housing type were of essential importance in the choice of parcelling.