Healthy Ageing Campus Groningen
October 2nd 2020
Team Felixx selected for masterplan
The University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) and the University of Groningen (RUG) form a joint campus in the center of the city. Felixx, Studio Donna van Milligen Bielke & DG group have been selected to draw up the "Strategic Landscape Plan" for the campus. Over the coming years, the masterplan will be developed into phaseable construction projects under the supervision of Felixx. The landscape plan is used as a spatial support for the transformations in the area. The focus is on anchoring the campus in the city.
Anchor point in the city
The position of healthcare in society has changed dramatically in recent decades. People have a longer life span and stay healthy longer. This comforting idea has pushed healthcare slowly away from our daily lives and to the borders of our cities. However the increased ageing of our population now puts a bigger pressure on our healthcare system. Also the Covid-19 crisis makes us realize the importance of a vital healthcare system that is embedded in our society in a sustainable manner. This calls for a re-evaluation of medical institutions in the city. Sports stadiums and culture clusters have been used in recent years as contemporary temples and boosters for area development. Care and medical centers must also (again) become visible and prominent anchor points in the city, offering pride and confidence to residents and visitors.
Podium for Healthcare
The importance of a "Healing Environment" brought care outside the treatment room. The positive impact of a good living environment on the recovery of patients was leading in the design and organization of hospitals. The UMCG and the RUG occupy an international top position in the field of scientific research into "Healthy Ageing". The aim here is to create a healthy lifestyle and associated conditions in order to preventively reduce demand for care. This approach asks for a further expansion of the scope of care provision, even beyond the walls of the hospital complex. The Healthy Ageing Campus offers a physical podium for this development: an interactive environment that visibly contributes to our mental and physical health.
Healthy Ageing Campus
The structure of the Healthy Ageing Campus (HAC) resembles a medieval city: organically grown, with passageways, fragmented open spaces and enclosed courtyards. We design the HAC as a healthy "urban fabric": a vital and future-proof framework that structures the area. To this end, a collaboration is being set up between the design team and specialized research groups of the UMCG-RUG. We use urban building blocks for this urban fabric: parks and squares, streets and avenues, gardens and courtyards. We use these building blocks as prototypical parts of a Healthy Aging Environment. Thus giving the transformation of this area the adaptability to permanently optimize the readability and cohesion of the campus. The campus will be an example and testing ground, a catalyst for the healthy city of Groningen.
