De Gaard, Utrecht | Outdated small neighborhood shopping center becomes contemporary multifunctional shopping area

Shopping center De Gaard in Utrecht is being substantially expanded to approximately 8,300 m² of retail space. There will also be a restaurant with a spacious terrace, fifteen apartments, a parking deck and bicycle parking spaces. De Vries en Verburg was commissioned to realize the project by real estate developer Top Vastgoed. The project started in late 2017 and the transformed building will be completed in the first quarter of 2020.

Shopping center De Gaard in Utrecht's Tuindorp-Oost district was in dire need of expansion and modernization. The well-run neighborhood shopping center with an Albert Heijn supermarket, supplemented by various local entrepreneurs, dates back to 1965 and apart from a restyling in the 1990s, little has changed in the meantime. As the number of visitors continued to rise due to the realization of residential neighborhoods in the neighborhood and the public also wants more comfort while shopping, a thorough upgrading was imminent. "At the request of property developer Top Vastgoed, Moke Architects in collaboration with Huibers Bureau for Architecture drew the plans for an all-sided building, a shopping center without a back. The building has a brick facade and glass canopies, which rest on steel supports. The rounded shape and graceful facade arches create a characteristic building," says Marco Pellikaan, project manager at De Vries en Verburg. "In the middle runs a shopping arcade with a new Albert Heijn supermarket on the north side and on the south side a picturesque little square with a cozy terrace and characteristic trees."

A general contractor with expertise

De Vries en Verburg Bouw was commissioned to realize this prestigious project. The construction company from Stolwijk, near Gouda, was founded in 1986 by Luchines De Vries and Jan Verburg, and today takes care of the entire construction process for both residential and non-residential projects: acquisition, engineering and calculation, project management and work preparation, execution as well as service and maintenance. The group also includes its own department for project development and real estate. Through its good contacts with developer Top Vastgoed, it became involved in the expansion and revitalization of De Gaard shopping center. "The area of the Albert Heijn supermarket will be almost doubled from 1,700 m² to 3,200 m² and we are realizing additional retail space for national retailers such as Etos, Primera and Kruidvat as well as some fresh specialty stores. The brief also includes a restaurant with spacious terrace for one hundred and fifty visitors and a parking deck with over eighty spaces, which together with bicycle parking should minimize traffic congestion for the neighborhood," Pellikaan explains the project. "Finally, the design provides fifteen two-bedroom apartments with private balconies. They feature a luxury kitchen with built-in appliances and a luxurious bathroom. Large windows provide plenty of light."

Shopping center ready for the future

To realize this expansion, Top Vastgoed acquired an adjacent parking lot and adjacent green spaces in consultation with the municipality of Utrecht. For the realization of the project, the developer will provide a new road structure and public area. In the first quarter of 2020, the metamorphosis of the shopping center should be completely finished. "This is a unique project with different construction phases each with their own challenges," concludes the project manager. "For example, the shopping center remained and will remain open throughout the construction process. Moreover, the new apartments were built against an existing apartment complex, without the residents having to leave their homes during the construction work."