Kanaalpark Leiden
In the heart of Leiden, vector-i is transforming a distinctive office building dating from 1989 into a modern, sustainable residential complex that explores the boundaries of circular architecture. Whilst the rest of the Kanaalpark has developed in recent years into a vibrant, high-quality urban neighbourhood, this particular building has remained frozen in time. With its outdated façade of gravel render and opaque mirrored glass, the building simply no longer met current aesthetic standards or the modern visual language of its surroundings.
Due to this closed and introverted appearance, the quality of life fell far short of the high ambitions of the revitalised campus. Without a radical change of direction, the building was in danger of becoming, once and for all, an anonymous and outdated relic that hindered, rather than enhanced, the neighbourhood’s dynamism. A new design was needed to restore the human scale, without completely losing sight of the site’s history.
The outdated façade, with its gravel-textured render and opaque mirrored glass, is being replaced by a transparent, dynamic outer skin. New opening sections of the façade create a direct connection between indoor and outdoor spaces, with light, air and the outdoors taking centre stage.
The result is the campus’s ‘white pearl’: a high-quality, open and light-filled residential building that is ready for contemporary city life. By using the existing building as a foundation, the history and character of the site find a natural place within a structure that now meets the very latest standards of comfort and sustainability. The building has definitively left its office past behind. In doing so, it demonstrates that sustainable architecture is not only environmentally friendly, but also aesthetically pleasing and functional.
Location Leiden, Nederland
Year 2022