353 pre-war social housing units get complete makeover

After three years of preparations and testing, the time had actually come: at the end of 2019, the residents of the Complex 507 neighborhood in Lombok-West (Utrecht) approved the plans, allowing housing corporation Bo-Ex, construction company Plegt-Vos and installer BOS installations together with the residents' association Future Club 507 were able to start the thorough renovation of 353 social housing units in April. By mid-2022, all the homes should be finished, at which point they will in principle be transferred to a local self-management organization, which will be formed from the residents. This residents' organization will maintain and manage the housing complex with various residential blocks and streets itself.

Complex 507 consists of a number of residential blocks with a total of 353 pre-war social housing units owned by Bo-Ex. This housing corporation understands better than anyone how valuable housing is, especially for people with a limited budget. It maintains and manages about 9,000 homes in Utrecht, paying close attention to sustainability. "The severely outdated homes of Complex 507 are also in need of refurbishment. Due to wear and aging, the wooden window frames and many pipes are bad. The homes are also not insulated and in many cases are still heated with gas stoves," says senior project manager Martijn Broekman. "For this complex, plans were made years ago to refurbish and/or demolish the homes. This met with much resistance from the residents, after which the plans were put on hold again indefinitely. In 2009, the Future Club 507 was formed with the goal of preserving and refurbishing the homes, without demolition. This residents' association is also the initiator of and driving the research into the possibilities of self-management. In 2016, a new attempt was made to make plans for a thorough renovation."

After three years of preparation and testing, finally nearly 83% of tenants approved the plans for maintenance and renovation work in late 2019.

Maintain and renovate

Plegt-Vos and BOS installations were actively involved in the new plans from the beginning. In close cooperation with the client and the residents' committee, the complete plan was worked out. After three years of preparations and testing, finally almost 83% of the tenants approved the plans for maintenance and rrenovation work at the end of 2019. These include replacing the kitchen, bathroom and toilet and renewing all plumbing. Masonry will be repaired and cracks repaired. In addition, attention is paid to energy performance. The floor, roof and exterior walls will be insulated, and better-insulated window frames will also be installed. All homes will have fire-resistant ceilings and the old gas stoves will be replaced with radiators and a gas central heating boiler.

"Work began in early April, and by mid-2022 all the homes should be completed," Broekman adds. "The 353 homes will be addressed block by block. During the works, residents will be given a guest house in the complex or just outside it, and their belongings will stay with their homes. After the maintenance and renovation, the homes should be much more comfortable and carry energy label A."

Residents get self-managed housing

After this renovation project, Bo-Ex will transfer the homes to the residents for self-management. Support for this was also achieved among the residents by the end of 2019. The intention is to create a self-management organization, which will maintain and manage the housing complex with the various residential blocks and streets itself. "There will be a central office in the neighborhood where residents can go for maintenance complaints and questions about social management. A neighborhood manager will also be appointed, who will resolve maintenance, technical complaints and repairs," Broekman concluded. "This way of working is new in the Netherlands. Self-management creates involvement with the residents. After all, they know very well what it takes to live nicely."

Construction Info

Client Bo-Ex Utecht
Main contractor Plegt-Vos
Assembly GB&O
Logistics BMN