Our plan builds on the history and assets of the city as a centre for technological innovation and industrial design and introduces exciting public programs to the area.
– David Gianotten

OMA and Being Development have won a competition to redevelop Eindhoven's Van der Meulen-Ansemsterrein (VDMA) former industrial site into an urban hub with public, green and cultural spaces, as well as residential and commercial elements.

The redevelopment is aimed at addressing the needs for local housing, space for leading technology companies and more exciting public realm in the city.

It will create a hub between the city centre, the station and the surrounding residential areas.

The 75,000sq m (807,000sq ft) VDMA site is partly unused and currently home to a number of industrial heritage buildings that will be repurposed.

A 19th-century match factory will be restored to house cultural, education and retail facilities, while a parking garage dating from the 1920s will become a flexible public space that can be used for exhibitions, events and theatre performances.

Elsewhere, one-third of the district will become a so-called "Micro Forest", comprising a variety of local vegetation types.

A five-storey co-working building will be built to wrap around the forest, while a public route will connect all cultural, retail and open spaces.

Residential buildings will be built at varying scales in relation to their surroundings and with glass façades that reference the city's industrial architecture.

They will also have integrated sustainability features, including green walls and kinetic PV panels that optimise solar gain.

Bas van Dam, co-founder of Being Development, said: "We carefully weighed programming, identity and sustainability to create the best possible balance. With VDMA, we aim to inspire the sector as a whole and show that it is possible to ensure radical innovation and realise a green urban development that attracts a wide variety of residents and users – a stage for everyone."

David Gianotten, project lead at OMA, said: "VDMA offers a unique opportunity to revive a centrally located site in Eindhoven that is full of potential. Our plan builds on the history and assets of the city as a center for technological innovation and industrial design and introduces exciting public programs to the area. The redeveloped VDMA-site will offer the city a platform for engagement with the most innovative ideas in technology and culture."

OMA and Being Development are working on the project with diederendirrix, FABRICations, DELVA and NUL ZES.