We have designed a new front for Gouda's central area (Binnenstad) along the river to the south (Hollandse IJssel). This intervention - two consolidations and the public space in-between - is to return to Gouda the town entrance it lost more than a century ago. With the old fortifications gone, the town entrance moved to the north, the flood defences at a new height and the arrival of a provincial road, the original entrance is no longer recognizable as such. Gouda has been severed from Hollandse IJssel and the Krimpenerwaard polder south of the river. The town and its fortifications used to be a duality - now one part has fallen away.

Binnenstad needs a new lease of life to keep it vibrant. If a town centre is to continue functioning as such, it has to grow. Our proposal has succeeded in developing a large programme, at the same time marking out the small buildings of historical importance that are to be protected. For us the model was the medium with which to engage the context (and each other) in dialogue. During this dialogue we managed to identify the problems and decide which analyses were required to be able to take new steps in the design process. The purpose of the model was to find forms that would lend a clear visual identity to Binnenstad's southern rim (IJsselfront). During the course of this study we discovered that the fortifications would serve us well as a space-defining motif, providing us with clear-cut forms in what is an intricate context. The old ramparts act as an urban plinth as well as an intermediary between the buildings sited on them and the town. The town is reminded of the presence of large forms, as a result of which the existing buildings can once more be understood in terms of the town.

On plan you can see how the buildings on the ramparts respond to that public space in our design. The central library on the west side completes the square on Veerstal. The spatial entity rising from the ramparts presents an elevation to Veerstal and marks the entrance. Its roof continues as the oblique plane of the ramparts to become a component of the public domain. The conference hotel on the east side functions as a landmark in the sight lines from the town and Krimpenerwaard in the south. Its tower is held clear of the raked plane, which is publicly accessible as an enlargement of the small urban park. In the spatial composition of the new IJsselfront we sought a combination of vitality and equipoise, as much between the new buildings as between them and the town.

Place of education: TU Delft
Specialization: architecture
Tutors: Henk Engel, Christoph Grafe, Leendert Verboom