Mobility Hub | archipelago + POLO

About The Mobility Hub

The Mobility Hub at Eandistip in Mechelen is a unique parking infrastructure that showcases a fresh approach. It features a circular design and provides parking spaces for both cars and bikes. Additionally, it offers public rooftop terraces, box-in-box offices, and even a local supermarket. The structure is designed to accommodate shared and self-driving cars, with compact parking arrangements that create extra space for other purposes. As part of a larger urban development, the Mobility Hub strives to serve as a vibrant transition zone, facilitating a seamless traffic flow between the city center and the outskirts.

In the early design stages, various scenarios for future use were considered. A flexible structure was designed to accommodate the program throughout the building, taking into account the needs of the neighboring community and ongoing urban development at Eandistip. The floorplans are open and spacious, thanks to loadbearing, prefabricated concrete X-elements in the façade, which form a grid of parallelograms.

Each floor of Mobility Hub has a generous height of 336 cm, without any protruding beams. The building incorporates a box-in-box principle for insulated functions, such as the offices on the upper floors, allowing for maximum versatility in program and floorplan layouts. The circulation core is strategically located between the two main volumes to minimize obstruction and provide easy access to different functions within the building. The design also integrates the possibility of adding split levels for a more compact, automated car park.

The car park plays a crucial role in the future of urban development. To reduce car usage in the city center, innovative solutions like the Mobility Hub have been implemented. Located on the outskirts of Mechelen, this hub enables drivers to park their cars and transition to public and sustainable transportation. The design of the car park is adaptable to various parking scenarios, reflecting the shift towards different modes of transportation. In addition to expanding bike parking, the car park can also accommodate self-driving and shared cars, freeing up more space for other activities within the building.

The Mobility Hub is not just a parking space but also a public building that offers more. It has two large urban terraces that provide a beautiful panoramic view of the city of Mechelen. These terraces can be used by office workers during the day and for public events during the night or on weekends. The upper floor terrace will eventually be transformed into a garden terrace with fully-grown trees. On the ground floor, there is the Welkomstplein, or Welcome Square, which serves as a link between the parking structure and the neighboring residential community. The curvilinear plinth design of the building allows for smooth movement in and out, accommodating various urban flows.

Project Info:

Architects: POLO architects, archipelago
Area: 19400 m²
Year: 2023
Photographs: Johnny Umans
Manufacturers: Hunter Douglas Architectural (Europe), Bateig, Florim, Zoontjens
Structure Engineers: B.A.S.
Landscape Architects: Ara, Vogt Landscape
Sustainability Consultants: DUSS-Explorers
Main Contractor: BAM Interbuild
Design: archipelago, POLO
MEP & HVAC: Sweco Structures
Surveyor: SECO
Safety Consultant: EvoPlus
City: Mechelen
Country: Belgium

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