The 735 brand new student homes on the TU/e campus will be officially used for the first time in August. This brings the total number of student homes on campus to 1,468. The first key was handed over on Thursday to two students who will also live in the towers, namely TU/e student Merijn Savelkoul and Fontys student Femke Kusters. Many students were actively involved in the plans during construction, so extra attention was paid to community building.
The Haven plan (designed by the architectural firm VenhoevenCS) consists of two residential towers and a student village (low-rise buildings). Castor is the name of the tower on the west side with 278 student homes, the eastern tower is called Pollux and consists of 371 student homes. Both towers are approximately 50 meters high (consisting of 16 floors). Between the two towers is the ’student village’ Terra with 86 homes spread over 5 streets with 2 floors, and these are intended for group living.
In total, the 735 homes provide housing for approximately 800 students. This housing is available to both Dutch and international students from TU/e, Fontys, and Summa. They all’attend education on the TU/e campus.
For TU/e, this means a significant expansion of student housing on campus, adding to the existing Luna and Aurora residential towers. Housing association Woonbedrijf owns the new student housing and rents it out under the name Vestide. Heijmans is responsible for the realization of the homes. The new towers were built on the site where ’the Pavilion’ used to stand, the first building of the TU/e campus from 1956.
Expanding the range of affordable housing options
Vice-chairman of TU/e Patrick Groothuis: "The commissioning of this large residential complex is of great importance for the Brainport region. This significantly expands the range of pleasant and affordable places to live, and attracts students who are so desperately needed to our region. As a university, we are not allowed to invest in student housing ourselves, but through the Student Housing Agreement we work intensively with partners to make developments possible. We are proud that in this way we can make a significant contribution to the provision of student housing in our region. We trust that we will be able to realize an additional 500 new units per year with the municipality and partners over the coming years. These are necessary to accommodate the talent that the region needs. It is a strict prerequisite for success. The Beethoven resources for infrastructure give this a boost."
Heijmans director Gijs Wagemakers: "We were able to realize the construction in a very short time by involving all’our co-makers in the design and opting for the prefabrication of the shell, facades, and bathrooms together with Woonbedrijf. Together, we managed to deliver the homes on time within a tight, almost Olympic-like schedule. We are extremely proud of this team performance and the end result."
TU/e’s new water storage system, which takes the form of a 270-meter long pond known as the Blauwe Loper, will be located like a boulevard along the residential towers. It will be a place where well-being and sustainability come together; the water has a positive effect on water drainage, biodiversity, heat stress, and mental health, amongst other things.
In addition, there are approximately 160 nesting boxes for birds and bats in the facades and on the green roof of Terra. The plants on the site and on the roof of the low-rise building provide food for birds and bats in the area.
Community building
There will be various meeting places for students in both the high-rise and low-rise buildings. This supports the vibrant community where living, studying, and recreation come together. There are dozens of common areas, each with its own theme, at the request of the students. The management, organization, and implementation of activities are borne by the student residents themselves. They have been actively involved in the construction plans from the start. This relates to the demand for the social well-being of students to be taken into consideration and the prevention of loneliness, an important theme for all parties.The names Castor and Pollux come from Greek mythology and refer to twin brothers who are considered adventurous explorers. The names of the twin brothers refer to the appearance of the 2 towers. Terra refers to Terra Mater (mother earth): the personification of the earth. This is in reference to the low-rise buildings in the ’student village’.
