Green living, working and playing in the Utrecht station area

Het Platform, a mixed-use community building right next to Utrecht Central station was recently completed and all new residents have moved in. The building combines 201 rental apartments with a large number of collective facilities, including a bike parking, commercial spaces for fitness and a restaurant, and many “sticky spaces” for social encounters.

The building has been designed as a MicroCity; an innovative concept for buildings and neighborhoods. By offering a mix of complementary functions it creates opportunities to enhance the post-carbon circular economy. By offering a mix of complementary functions it creates opportunities to enhance the post-carbon circular economy. By reducing mobility needs, the MicroCity concept strongly contributes to cities becoming truly sustainable at large.

Nature-inclusive

Het Platform is one of the first realized nature-inclusive residential buildings at this scale in the Netherlands. It is like a natural landscape within the city: with a wide variety of plants and trees in its façade planters and four different roof gardens, the building strengthens local biodiversity. The planting plan by Studio LandLab is based on landscapes in the province of Utrecht. Because of a rich floral mix and successively flowering trees, such as the honey tree and the magnolia, the building is in bloom the major part of the year for it to attract birds and insects. The roof gardens are essential components of the building program and offer fantastic views over the station area and the historical city center.

Building over tracks

As Het Platform is constructed on top of the new Uithoflijn tram and bus terminal, the total program of more than 18,000 m² has a minimum footprint of only 170 m² at ground level. To solve the many engineering challenges, an ingenious custom-made lightweight steel construction with 3D trusses was developed and integrated with the first floors of the building. Because of this smart solution, the building’s execution required half the amount of steel and concrete.

After careful relocation during a period of strict coronavirus measures, the building is now fully inhabited and the greenery has started to grow and bloom. Soon the Alienware Training Facility of famous e-sports organization Team Liquid will also open in Het Platform – the green and inviting building in the busiest part of The Netherlands.

Request Presskit