Within five years or so, Eindhoven’s city centre will have new paving. The red stones are to be removed, and the new stones are grey, with pebbles in different colours.
The pebbles come from Eindhoven soil. Test drilling was carried out in collaboration with Eindhoven-based design agency Atelier NL. After that, the current colours, shapes, and patterns were created.
The streets in the inner city of Eindhoven will soon be divided into three lanes: pavement, street, and pavement. The pavements consist of the new ‘Eindhoven paving stones’. The street is also grey, but with a slightly different hue. The sidewalks and the street are at ground level and merge into one another without any height differences.
“The experiences with the test paving in the city centre indicated that Eindhoven residents consider it important that the new paving is lively, of good quality, and has an Eindhoven character. We listened to that”, Councillor Rik Thijs says.
New city centre
The new paving is only part of the city centre’s redevelopment. Large building projects are planned. There will be much more greenery, including trees and shrubs, in the shopping streets too. This should make it easier to stay in the city centre during the hot summers. The city centre should also have more allure, one that suits the centre of the innovative high-tech region of Brainport.
Finally, the inner city needs to be enlarged by making it more of a single entity. Thijs: “At present, the city centre is still too fragmented, with, for example, Dommelstraat and De Bergen. The new paving, among other things, is intended to ensure that it becomes more unified”.
The total refurbishment cost is more than EUR18 million. This money is to be used for the new paving and more greenery. It is also earmarked for the renovation of, among other things, the sewer system. The City Council still has to approve the financing for the redevelopment in September.
The red stones will be replaced from next year. The job should be completed by 2025.
Source: www.studio040.nl
Translated by: Bob
Editor: Melinda Walraven
