The transformation of Tilburg from a conglomerate of sheep-rearing villages to a modern university city entails the revitalisation of outdated residential districts, including the Zeeheldenbuurt. De Zwarte Hond drew up an urban development plan that envisages the creation of varied housing environments around a new heart with a green square next to the familiar church. A new Multifunctional Accommodation (MFA), an institute for Mental Health Care (GGZ) and three apartment blocks have been built facing this square, all designed by Atelier PRO.
The Multifunctional Accommodation, the church, the adjoining presbytery and the former nunnery form a whole in terms of function and urban planning. The L-shaped Accommodation, the nunnery and a wall surround a green courtyard. Although this is enclosed, apertures and large openings between the buildings function as gigantic windows to offer exciting vistas of the green playground behind. The programme of the Multifunctional Accommodation involved quite a lot: a very complete neighbourhood centre, kindergarten, primary school with thirteen classes, apartments and facilities for people with a handicap with regard to housing, work and leisure, and even a psychiatric health centre (GGZ). The combination of independent functions and a sense of community has been given architectural form by hollowing out and ‘eroding’ the building from the inside and the outside and then linking these white hollows and incisions by means of a clever system of corridors and stairs. As a result, the Multifunctional Accommodation is full of unsuspected corners and holes.
The apartment blocks form part of three semi-closed volumes that consist otherwise of single family homes. Some of the parking lots are situated in the courtyards of these blocks. The dwellings are orientated towards the green square. The balconies and gardens are situated on the same side. To guarantee enough privacy for this public side, the apartments were set back a bit to create a transitional zone between the pavement and the home. The staggering of the apartments has resulted, as in the Multifunctional Accommodation, in an unusual articulated volume. The façades on the building line (directly adjacent to the street) are in red brick, while the recessed façades have been plastered. This accentuates the sculptural character of the façade even more.
