08.11.2020 Views

The Rampart, The Traffic Artery, and the Park; Designing for the city regions of Antwerp

Through a close reading of Antwerp’s current spatial and socio-economic composition, and the introduction of the interplay between the city’s three defining paradigms – abstracted to ‘The Rampart, the Traffic Artery, and the Park’ – this study tries to sketch a unifying strategy for Antwerp’s metropole. A strategy that embeds residential, economic, cultural, recreational, climatic, and historical motives within the different city regions. Thereby improving the connection between the left and right side of the river; transitioning the suburban region to a more polycentric structure while maintaining a spatial relation to the city; and explicitly manages the horizontal growth of the periphery. But that most importantly, captures the metropole in a single narrative from its inner-city to its outer edges. Graduation thesis prepared for the master’s degree in urban design at the Eindhoven University of Technology.

Through a close reading of Antwerp’s current spatial and socio-economic composition, and the introduction of the interplay between the city’s three defining paradigms – abstracted to ‘The Rampart, the Traffic Artery, and the Park’ – this study tries to sketch a unifying strategy for Antwerp’s metropole. A strategy that embeds residential, economic, cultural, recreational, climatic, and historical motives within the different city regions. Thereby improving the connection between the left and right side of the river; transitioning the suburban region to a more polycentric structure while maintaining a spatial relation to the city; and explicitly manages the horizontal growth of the periphery. But that most importantly, captures the metropole in a single narrative from its inner-city to its outer edges.

Graduation thesis prepared for the master’s degree in urban design at the Eindhoven University of Technology.

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

Figure 1.13

A defined urban edge for the ring

park.

Towards a paradigm shift.

Verbonden (groene ring) Geen rand Stedelijke rand

With the construction of the ring park, the city wants to refocus the growth

of the peripheral areas to the ring zone and thereby create a defined urban

edge on both the side of the inner-city and the suburbs. With this densification

strategy, the city wants to initiate a paradigm shift in the relationship between

the city and its suburbs; from two districts that are currently facing away from

each other, the city was to go to districts that are turning towards each other.

Thereby stimulating a better connection. With this densification the city wants

to increase its share of apartments for families. Special care is taken towards

making these homes affordable, via leaseholds or by developing housing companies

in which residents can buy shares.

Figure 1.14

From turning away to facing each

other.

Radiaal-concentrisch

stadsmodel

With the ring park the city wants to connect the several loose green patches

Naar binnen gekeerd Verbonden (groene ring) Geen rand

around the current ring, and make the city healthier, by reducing heat stress,

flood risk, and air and noise pollution. In doing so the city wants to become

one of the most competitive metropolitan regions in Europe, in an effort to attract

new talent and investment to the city. Antwerp wants to use the Ring Park

as the link between the green areas in the city and the larger scale regional

nature areas. Attaching the green in the city through green streets to the Ring

33

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!