Zuidrand

Abstract

The border between a city and its surrounding landscape comes in all kinds of forms. It is hard to say if one is better than the other. But can they help in orientating in the city? The cities of Flanders all have a very vague transition to the landscape. In the past the government has always stimulated the people to move into the countryside, creating many direct roads (steenwegen) between the cities. These roads where used for ribbon development, hiding the green chambers behind it.Antwerp has an interesting location in Flanders because of the river Schelde, its harbour and its location near the Netherlands. Since 1970, the government has noted that the connections between city and landscape (which is divided by the ring road of Antwerp) should be improved for more efficient transport to the city centers. But few thought is spent on creating public space around the ring road which is attractive for slow traffic, connecting the different city parts on a lower scale. An opportunity exists for creating one Antwerp with a strong identity. The main focus point of Antwerp development nowadays is in 't Eilandje, an old harbour district in the north. This will move to the Zuidrand because of several large projects, which consist of dwellings, offices and the first bridge ever to cross the Schelde. These separated developments miss the chance to develop the whole area as one, and creating a low scale connection between city and landscape. The moving petrol industries, its increasing mobility because of the Oosterweelverbinding and the Schelde river offer opportunities for large developments and giving identity to the South of Antwerp and the city in total. The design for the structure vision of the Zuidrand focuses on creating low scale connections, accenting crossing points, keeping open space where possible and orientation on the Schelde. Transfer points between different modalities offer an efficient transportation to the city center and the landscape. Flexibility is important in the plan. This is achieved by creating building envelopes for people to build in, the possibility for people to build their own houses and using a strategic phasing plan to realize the whole or parts of the plan. The main transfer point is a crossing of all kinds of transportation: pedestrians, bicycles, cars, train and trams. It offers the opportunity for a transfer place and large public functions. A lively and pedestrian friendly place is created by placing different kinds of functions in high density on a small surface area. This makes it attractive and efficient to use public transportation systems to go to your destination and than walk to your goal. An icon along the Schelde is created, forming an example for the rest of the city to also return to the Schelde, which is the origin of the city. In this way a marking point between city and landscape arises, helping in orientating in Antwerp.