From warehouse to market hall
Known as the former Utrecht bicycle depot and part of the Merwede area development, Mei is designing a public building with a cultural canvas on the ground floor, a place for creative enterprises in the Living Lab above, and a new Paris Proof rooftop extension. Commissioned by Lingotto Ontwikkeling B.V., Janssen de Jong Projectontwikkeling and 3T Vastgoed, Mei is shaping the transformation of the former storage building. Mei has been closely involved with the Merwede area development for a long time and, on behalf of the municipality of Utrecht, advised at an early stage to preserve the storage building and give it a new meaning. Under the name DEPOT, the building opens itself to its surroundings and grows into a vibrant center within the new, healthy urban district.
Project info
Status
In development
Clients
Lingotto, Janssen de Jong
Programme
A mix of market hall, catering facilities, boutique hotel, Knowledge Lab, bicycle parking, small businesses, living
Size
14.515 m2 GFA
Young heritage
The existing storage building is located on the former OPG site. The history of the site is characterized by both social engagement and innovative enterprise. Originally, the site housed the Onderlinge Farmaceutische Groothandel (OPG), founded from a pharmacists’ guild, where medicines were developed, manufactured and distributed in innovative ways.
The site is characterized by optimistic post-war reconstruction architecture from the 1950s and 1960s. The ensemble layout, with readable production flows and the relatively intact condition of the buildings, makes this a unique historically valuable complex suitable for a mix of urban functions and housing.
Currently, the area consists of company buildings, bulk halls with creative incubators, the depot building, and at the same time a large sandy plain where the municipal bus depot once stood.
1980s storage building
The building to be transformed, designed by Aronsohn Raadgevend Ingenieursbureau, is a typical 1980s storage building with a closed, almost stubborn appearance — understandable given its original function as a medicine storage facility. From 2006 until June 2021 it served as the municipal bicycle depot.
Despite its sober appearance, the building possesses remarkable qualities, such as generous heights and an endless landscape of columns.
Reuse and transformation
DEPOT represents a circular development in which maximum use is made of existing structures and materials. The concrete structural frame forms a flexible support for new programming and serves as the foundation for an extension on top. The later-added steel structure of the intermediate floor will be reused to house young, innovative and creative businesses.
The existing robust appearance of concrete, masonry surfaces and glass will be enriched through targeted interventions and striking openings. The characteristic scale of the building (50 × 70 m), as well as the distinctive corners, will be preserved. The new rooftop extension presents itself in its own way to the square and brings the sober storage building to life.
New values
DEPOT plays a central role in stimulating vibrancy and a healthy living environment in the high-density urban context of Merwede. The building is located between the future neighborhood square and Merwedepark and will be largely publicly accessible. This gives it a key role in connecting visitors, residents and entrepreneurs.
The building aligns with the municipal action program “Building the City Together the Utrecht Way” and will become a dynamic place for a pleasant society where creativity, innovation and social values are shared.
The core values of DEPOT are local, together and for a better world. These are expressed in sustainability, circularity, flexibility and renewed contact with the outdoors.
The Cultural Canvas, with its impressive column structure, offers space for different types of hospitality venues and events. DEPOT is designed for unexpected and future (neighborhood) initiatives. The new use will include a public bicycle parking facility.
New openings connect the covered public space to the neighborhood square. An inviting address will also be created at Merwedepark. On the canal side, DEPOT literally stands with its feet in greenery, allowing plants to climb up along the perforated canopy. On the OPG side, the bicycle parking facility will have an address on the “cour productive,” where business activities and urban sports meet.
On the upper floor, a single central intervention creates a patio that brings light, air and space into the Living Lab. In this way, the dark storage building is transformed into a healthy and inspiring work environment. The patio forms a meeting place that spatially connects entrepreneurs with the rooftop extension.
Concept
The depot
- Introverted building
- Inside, lots of spaciousness due to 7m high floors
- Forest of columns
- Little daylight in the middle of the building
- Two stability cores
Sharing unexpected vacancy with the city
- Unexpected space and height by making large floor cut in the middle of the building
- Impressive experience from the inside due to 14m high columns
- Functional and open space along the facades
- New openings in the facade provide more daylight
- Dramatic light penetration through subtle cutout in the roof
1 + 1 = 3: Extraordinary volume addition with loft houses
Balancing existing and new
- Multiple setbacks create a mountain landscape in volume and exterior spaces
- The 1st setback continues all around with a readable roof edge of the depot
- Using the setbacks to direct light, air and sunlight for the surrounding area
- Creating a hollow for a common deck on the roof of the depot
New generation rooftop extension
The existing building forms the base for the new wooden structure of the extension. Through careful integration, two additional floors can be added on the existing column grid (5 × 5 m). Based on the principles of industrial and flexible construction, the wooden columns, beams and floors are assembled in a demountable way.
With the circular and biobased extension, DEPOT becomes a storage of materials as well as of CO₂. By allowing the second layer to float, a strong new identity emerges on the square. The former backside transforms into a fully-fledged address.
On the canal side, the extension steps back, creating space for greenery and contributing to a friendly spatial composition that relates to the houseboats across the water. The other sides will feature green rooftop terraces all around.
DEPOT will be realized in two phases. The temporary program includes the MerwedeLab as a knowledge center and hospitality on the ground floor. In the second phase — expected to be completed in 2027 — the public functions will be expanded.
DEPOT will become a place where craftsmanship, creative enterprise and collaboration come together. Visitors will be able to enjoy locally produced food and relax with a snack and a drink on a sunny terrace.
To stimulate liveliness throughout the day, different types of use blend and complement each other. As a result, DEPOT is attractive at any time of day — both on weekdays and during weekends. Local residents and visitors feel welcome and discover something new each time.
An important component of DEPOT is the Cultural Canvas: a flexible space that adapts to the moment. Sometimes it can be closed off; at other times it opens fully for public activities that connect with the overall program.
