De Broeckgouw construction project

The municipality of Edam-Volendam is attracting national attention due to de Broeckgouw, its new housing estate project. No project developer was required for this project – instead, the municipality is taking charge of the construction of around 1000 residential units in the new housing estate in Volendam.

The municipality is not looking to turn a profit per se. It wants to provide its citizens with a neighbourhood that offers a lasting quality of life. It is a virtually unique situation that the municipality itself has stepped in as the developer and is implementing and managing many of the on-site activities. Based on a housing requirements study carried out among the residents, the municipality has determined which types of residence will be built. The municipality is not, however, taking part in designing the units. Instead, a number of architects have been selected to design the apartments.

The project primarily consists of starter homes along with free plots to enable buyers to build their own residential units. With the scope of the bids and tenders in mind, various areas of expertise have to be covered by the project office, e.g. for matters pertaining to real estate and coordination of the various facets of this complex project. A number of external advisers are also on hand to provide their expertise at the project office. The board and the municipal council are currently settling the key decisions. A design by the Rotterdam-based urban design agency Kuijper Compagnons is being used for the urban development of Broeckgouw.

For this project, Holonite has provided Premax thresholds, brackets and window cills. The window sills are both straight and angled to meet the criteria of the bay windows and other window fronts. The brackets are present throughout the row of residential units, thereby reinforcing the concept of a single building in which multiple apartments are fused.