Food court A27 Nieuwegein: green oasis along highway

Very likely you will be able to order a burger or spaghetti during the Christmas vacations at one of the eateries at the food court in Nieuwegein, near the A27 motorway. The project is in the business park Het Klooster and was built by Dunavast. In addition to its unusual appearance, the food court also stands out for its green facade with nesting boxes and bee hotels. 

There will also be a large parking lot with many trees and plantings, which will also be equipped with sixteen Equins charging stations. "We found this project a challenge because until now there has been little sustainable highway-related hospitality industry," says Aart Jan Verdoold, CEO at Dunavast. "Then it's nice to make a difference in that." The business park on which Foodcourt A27 Nieuwegein stands largely consisted of brick, blocky buildings and very little greenery.

A party that remains

Dunavast calls itself a developing investor and aims to develop high-quality real estate by using sustainable materials that fit into the environment. But this also concerns the quality of the tenants or the quality of the leases. As a developing investor, Dunavast is not a developer who builds something only to sell the project at the highest price. "We are a party that stays. That instills confidence in both administrators and users, because they know we'll operate with them when it's finished."

Steel Price

The challenge in this project was in building with steel. Besides concrete, there is a lot of steel in the building. "We wanted to use the steel in such a way that you can take it apart in 30 years and use it somewhere else," says Dr. K. K., who has been working on the project for many years. But the biggest challenge was price. Early this year, the world economy picked up after the COVID-19 period. As a result, raw materials including steel became scarce and the price tripled. "The difference between the price at the time when we started and when we commissioned is bizarre," he said.

Strategic positioning

The name Foodcourt A27 Nieuwegein not only covers the location, but also says something about the expected flow of customers. In the first place these are the thousands of motorists who drive on that stretch of the A27 every day. In addition, customers come from business park Het Klooster itself. The third customer flow is the built-up area of Nieuwegein, because the new food court is not far from there. Customers will soon be able to choose from four restaurants: McDonalds, KFC, Happy Italy and Restaurant De Beren. 

Tower of forty meters

In its appearance, the Foodcourt A27 Nieuwegein is something very special. "Normally something like this is a kind of block box with a pole and a few logos on it, but that was not our ambition and neither was the municipality. What we did was make the height accent part of the building." The four restaurants are actually four little buildings, but the space between them has been pulled into the facade. "So in the image, it forms one building that extends to a tower that happens to have the function of a name sign." That tower is quite a height accent at 40 meters. "A very beautiful architectural urban play. A green oasis in a desert of stone. How nice is it to have something to eat and drink there?"