Karin Snoep graduated last January at Field Academy with a multifunctional project for living, care and welfare for the elderly in Oud-Charlois. For this she received an honorable mention. Karin is currently involved in a project at Field Academy on assisted living areas Kralingen-Crooswijk, so she can immediately apply the knowledge she gained during her research in practice.
The location for the task: ‘How elderly are able to live independently as long as possible’ is determined by the location of the most relevant facilities (such as a pharmacy, post office and supermarket), connections to public transport and the distribution of existing elderly housing in the nieghbourhood. The chosen site, south of Frans Bekkerstraat and west of Boergoense Vliet, lies at a distance of 300 meters from the most relevant provisions.
It is also important that the health facilities are located in the vicinity of the elderly residences. An inventory of Oud-Charlois showed that these facilities appear to be concentrated especially around Drpsweg (east of Oud-Charlois). For the benefit of a better distribution of care services, Karin Paired the residences for elderly with a service center with care services. Therefore, provisions that are currently missing in the neighbourhood, are newly added, such as a dentist. Other facilities that currently exist solitaire in the neighbourhood will be moved, such as the pedicure. Besides health services, also welfare facilities are added, such as a nursery. The nursery currently lies north of the block on Frans Bekkerstraat and can be moved.
This clustering of different types of facilities makes it a multipurpose building, in which facilities can be shared, such as printer and conference rooms. It is also interesting that these facilities attract a diverse audience, and create a center for the district where people can meet.
Purely clustering different services does not provide a successful service center. Therefore it is important that the center is connected to the routes in the neighbourhood. Based on GPS-tracking, these routes have been mapped. This shows that the Frans Bekkerstraat and tram stand on Boergoense Vliet are on lie on the route. So the building facades that lie on these sides of the route should be recognizable, visible and accessible. The entrances deserve a lot of attention in this project. They should not only be visible from the street, but it is essential that it is visible from the entrance what happens in the building.
The center of the building is the atrium, the must public area. Here you can surf the internet, sit, drink coffee and meet each other. This space can be viewed from the houses so one can enjoy this vibrant space.
The presence of greenery is a great matter to the elderly. This involved not only the presence of parks, but also a continuity of greenery past and through which one can walk. The Boergoense Vliet is such a green route, which was seen in the GPS –tracking. The disadvantage of the Boergoense Vliet is that it is a long stretch, with few opportunities to cross over. Therefore, in this plan, a bridge is built across the Boergoense Vliet, in line with the Voornse Vliet, which provides the opportunity to take a smaller walk along the Vliet.
The Chosen location is a small park on the east side of the former school. This is currently closed with gates, so cannot be used. The nursery and day care have access to this garden, through the former school, so that the park is given a function. In addition, by removing the fences and by placing benches, the park can also be used by people in the area.
The houses on the Frans Bekkerstraat are currently in poor condition, but the area used to be a hot-spot. This means that this area calls for an intervention. The houses on the upper floors are made suitable for the elderly and the houses on the ground floor for families. This combination of old and young makes is a lively block and eliminates the stigma ‘complex for elderly’.
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