The Design Academy Eindhoven (DAE) and the municipality have finally agreed on a new location for the design school. The academy will build a new school building along the canal.
The location is next to the residential towers of De Caai. A declaration of intent has now been signed between the DAE board, the municipality of Eindhoven and real estate entrepreneur Geva Vastgoed, who owns the location.
In addition to a building for the prestigious design school, 250 student homes will be built in the area. Student homes were an essential part of the requirements of the Design Academy. Many academy students, who often come from outside the Netherlands, have difficulty finding a place to live.
Development location
DAE director Raf De Keninck is pleased with the new destination for the academy. “We are very pleased with the total offer that is now available. The Canal Zone is a development location with great potential and offers space for innovation, creativity and inspiration. This location will be a great breeding ground for future designers.”
The fact that DAE does not have to move into an existing building but can have a new building also makes De Keninck happy. “We can create a tailor-made building with the required surface area within the possibilities of our budget. We are also happy that it is being investigated whether student housing can be realised in the immediate vicinity for our national and international first-year students,” says De Keninck.
Embedded
Mayor Jeroen Dijsselbloem is also optimistic about the development. “We have recently worked together to create a suitable location and circumstances for DAE and its students. This has now been found in the Canal Zone. This creates a new future for the academy, firmly embedded in Eindhoven.”
Timeline
There are still questions about the timeline. After all, a new building still has to be fully developed. Therefore, it is expected to take a while before the first shovel goes into the ground. In the meantime, the DAE lease in the Witte Dame runs until the end of 2025.
It seems unlikely that the design school will be able to move into the new building in 2026. A spokesperson for the design school could not yet say anything about a possible interim solution for the housing of the DAE.
Headache
Nevertheless, finding the new location has solved a headache for both the DAE and the municipality of Eindhoven. The Design Academy had been looking for a new location for the school for some time. Discussions with the municipality of Eindhoven offered so little prospect of a good location that even a move to Roermond was considered. Something that was met with a lot of resistance from both students and staff of the programme, as well as prominent Eindhoven designers.
