Honigpoort
a community space for and by improvisation | bricolage
A. Poelma (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
P.E.L.J.C. Vermeulen – Mentor (TU Delft - Situated Architecture)
L.G.A.J. Reinders – Graduation committee member (TU Delft - Situated Architecture)
J.D. Fokkinga – Graduation committee member (TU Delft - Architectural Engineering)
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Abstract
The shopping mall the Molenpoort (Nijmegen) was constructed in 1972 and is creating this hyperreality; an indoor world without rain, wind or snow. The invention of Victor Gruen, a foreign typology from America occupies all the negative space within the building block. Victor Gruen’s idea for the mall was a building where the community would gather, but at the end the mall evolved to a function with only a commercial purpose. This introverted architectural typology makes the visitor wander and tries to keep them inside for as long as possible. In the beginning the mall was a popular destination to shop, meet and greet, but after time went by it began to decay. Two major renovations (1985 and 2000) tried to save the mall, but it has become outdated again. There are multiple reasons why shopping malls have fallen into disuse, for instance the economic crisis in 2008 and a rapid change of our culture in social and in technical sense. The growth of online shopping is immense, with its peek during the Corona crisis, this virtual world is competing with the shopping centres in the real cities.
The new urban proposal contains outdoor streets, intimate public spaces, a large square for events and a rooftop park. The Molenpoort is divided into smaller building blocks which locate multiple functions, among which a public building. This public building has a central position in the urban proposal and locates creative companies from the Honigcomplex. The building is based on the concept of bricolage, which is about the act of improvisation. The building is reusing the existing concrete structure of the Molenpoort and besides that reusing the existing steel structure of the Honigcomplex. The building will be a place in the city were people are making, baking, dancing, cooking, playing and presenting. This makers industry (factory) is visible in the architectural expression of the building. By introducing an alternative function to housing, the makers industry and the community will be reengaged and the Honigpoort can function as a catalysator to the city centre of Nijmegen.