The area around Leiden central station will undergo major changes the coming years. The municipality will collaborate with real estate owners and developers to transform the area. Currently the area is characterised as a functional, asphalt, public transport area. It will transform into an urban entrance with allure: a lively, functional area where you can live, work and comfortably stay.

Coalition of Ambition: The most sustainable kilometer of the Netherlands

The station area and the Schipholweg in Leiden combined create an area of a kilometer long, with Leiden Station at it’s heart

Coalition of Ambition
Each party involved in the coalition of ambition, used to work individually on sustainability. Early 2018 we concluded that we could work more efficiently by working together. This is how the idea was born of creating a community. A “Coalition of Ambition” that learns and experiments together. The community was launched in 2018 and by now there are 29 partners tied to the community by signing the Green Deal “the Most Sustainable Kilometer of the Netherlands”. Participants are not only developers, builders, investors, municipalities, provinces, watermanagement organisatins, but also companies such as Rabobank, NS, ProRail and initiatives such as PLNT, Schipholweg Buiness Platform and residents.

Water resilient Rooftops

With intensity increasing, the importance of buffer capacity for rainwater increases as well. A part of this waterbuffering is done in the public space, but the rooftops of building can also be used for buffering.

To do this, well thought out, innovative agreements between real estate owners, municipalities and local water management companies is crucial. The collaboration between these three parties is facilitated through the knowledge and capacity within the SPONGE-project.

A large part of the knowledge acquired comes from Rotterdam and their experience with water buffering through existing buildings. The aim is to create a technical solution that creates a beautiful, green station area and what can be an example for other western European cities.

Sustainable placemaking: The Field

The Field is a project within the Most sustainable kilometer of the Netherlands and is situated right in front of the Leiden train station. The field has three types of buildings: A circulair pavilion, six tiny offices and a small space for events. Everything is build as sustainable and circulair as possible. The aim of the Field is to demonstrate and accelerate a sustainable and climateproof economy and to show case what is possible.

The tiny offices are small buildings for entrepeneurs, companies, foundations and public organisations. In collaboration with Leiden University, Beelen, Van Wijnen, Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland and Fonds1818, the circulair pavilion is created.

For more info, check:

• www.duurzaamstekilometer.nl