What will the public space look like with no more cars? In the preliminary design for the public space of Merwede, Utrecht’s newest city district, the starting point is green; paving is only where necessary, making it an exceptionally green district. As one of the largest car-free inner-city neighborhood projects in the Netherlands, there is much more space for biodiversity, urban rewilding, and social activities than if the public space was used for roads, crossings, and car parking. In the car-free Merwede, LOLA Landscape Architects utilizes the space for nature, people, and water storage.

Merwede’s nature-based city space consists of playful neighborhood squares, unique courtyard gardens, the waterfront Merwede Park, the Europalaan, and its meandering trails for pedestrians and cyclists.

Brigitta van Weeren, LOLA Landscape Architects: “What makes Merwede special is the scale on which we implement nature-inclusive design, climate adaptation, and social design in the city. We approach the public space not just as a collection of streets, squares, and parks but also as an urban nature area that creates a thriving living environment for animals and humans in the city.”

The future of the city is embedded in nature. With nature being a precondition for healthy urban living, Utrecht’s Merwede is to become a high-density urban district, with 6.000 houses on 24 hectares in the southwest of Utrecht. Focusing on public space as ‘Merwede biotope’, LOLA Landscape Architects aims to design ample green space for biodiversity, sustainable living, and relaxation in an attractive environment.

In Merwede, this city nature area is home to a succession of diverse biotopes, rich biodiversity, and robust green structures. With the buzzing of bees, the rustling of a hedgehog, and the chirping of the house sparrow, you imagine yourself in nature. The 'Merwede biotope' is a sequence of different ecotopes that are linked to the target species. Abundance and diversity of species are important, and we ensure to recognize this by creating the right conditions such as sunlight, wind, and soil quality.

For the landscape design, LOLA teamed up with Bureau Stadsnatuur, MOVE Mobility and in close collaboration with the Utrecht municipality, BURA, and other stakeholders. The main focus is to maximize urban nature in a car-free public space that prioritizes pedestrians and cyclists. Merwede is to become an inviting, green, and lively public space for all. 

Project Data
Project name:  Landscape design Merwede 
Location: Utrecht, The Netherlands
Size: 24 ha
Design: 2022-2023
Client: Gemeente Utrecht
I.c.w: Bureau Stadsnatuur, MOVE Mobility, AM, Boelens de Gruyter, BPD, Greystar, G & Vastgoed, Janssen de Jong, Lingotto, Round Hill Capital, 3T Vastgoed, Synchroon
Urban plan: BURA