Seven years after theinauguration of the world-famous Bosco Verticale in Milan, Stefano Boeri Architetti presents thevery first social housing Vertical Forest in the world.Builtin the city of Eindhovenin the Netherlands, it has been namedtheTrudo Vertical Forest.
A19-storey residential tower (70 meters high) with 135 trees of various species on each of its four facades and 10,000 shrubs and plants of smaller dimensions, the Trudo Vertical Forest hosts 125 apartments all with affordable rents designed to accommodate predominantly low-income users,especially young couples.
Eachflat issmall in size withless than 50 square metres,but with the extraordinary spatial extension offered by terraces of more than 4 square meters and the natural micro-environment created by the presence on each balcony of 1 tree and 20 bushes.
“The Trudo Tower in Eindhoven represents theachievement of a great goalfor all of us, namelythat of making the Vertical Forest typology of building (something which we are experimentingwithin different parts of the world) accessible even for tenants with low incomes; this is to show that livingin contact with trees and greenery -and enjoying their advantages- is not the prerogative of richpeople but could well become a possible choice for millions of citizens around the world”saysthe architect Stefano Boeri.
“The Trudo Vertical Forest defines new living standards: through the use of prefabrication, the rationalization of certain technical façade solutions and therefore the optimization of resources, it is the first prototype of a vertical forest intended for social housing” saidFrancesca Cesa Bianchi, partner and project director at Stefano Boeri Architetti.
The mix of residents
The residents (most of whom have already received the key to their homes)have been assigned on the basis of motivation and by drawing lots.
Thirty homes have been reserved for urgent flex residents, special clients and status holders*. They will all be able to live with an affordable socially advantageous rent (€633,20 per month) in one of the most attractive places in Eindhoven and one which also contributesto the Strijp-Scommunity, the extraordinary urban area that accommodates a unique mix of facilities for living, working and relaxingin a creative surrounding with an imposing, robust and industrial look and feel.
Being part of this community is entirely coherent with the social value of this intervention, one thatmust also be measured in terms of urban impact and, in a broader sense, the global scenario of cultural and symbolic values and visions linked to the architectural project.
Construction costs
The reduction of construction costs is an essential element for the creation of social housing building.All the knowhow and experience acquired by Stefano Boeri Architetti during the construction of the very first Vertical Forest in Milan in combination with the latest generation construction technologies, the prefabrication of the main part of the building, the rationalization of certain technical solutions for the façades and more generally, the optimization of resources related to the project and the construction of the building, have contributed to the reduction of construction costs,as requested by the Sint-Trudosocial housing company.
Thegreenery
For aspects related to the design of the organic component of the Trudo Vertical Forest, Stefano Boeri Architetti made use of technical advice provided by the Laura Gatti Studio directed by the agronomist Laura Gatti. This partnership had already borne fruit in the creation of the Milan Vertical Forest and other ongoing urban forestation projects and in this case the Gatti Studio also worked closely with the DuPré Groenprojecten studio in Helmond and the Van den Berk nursery in Sint-Oedenrode. The maintenance of the entire complex, including the plants, is collective and managed directly by Sint Trudo while the specific maintenance of the greenery is carried out at considerable heights by a team of flying gardeners.
