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News · June 3, 2025
Nijverdal’s Grotestraat becomes a catalyst for a green and climate-adaptive city centre
It all began in 2019, with the completed revitalization of Nijverdal’s Grotestraat, where we redefined the streetscape with a bold,climate-adaptive approach. Inspired by its success, the municipality assigned us a new challenge: to expand our blue-green vision and create a continuous loop of green, climate-adaptive streets surrounding the city centre, adding Willem Alexanderstraat, Keizerserf and Maximastraat to our plan.
This transformation is turning thus the city centre into a resilient, nature-based ecosystem, making Nijverdal a welcoming place to visit and linger, enriching the experiences of locals, pedestrians, and cyclists, while also driving sustainability efforts, and enhancing climate adaptability.
Leveraging nature-based solutions
Reducing urban heat by maximizing greenery. Extensive green is introduced to provide shade, reduce wind, and cool the city center. This commitment to greenery extends to reimagining shopfront spaces and repositioning the city market to accommodate even more planting.
Enhancing water infiltration and retention by introducing numerous wadis that store and filter rainwater, allowing it to infiltrate the soil. These design solutions help us also to reduce the pressure on municipal drainage systems. A new gentle slope, addressing the 2-meter elevation difference, efficiently directs the water flow and ensures at the same time smooth pedestrian movement.
Activating the public realm by linking the green areas to welcoming and inviting places to stay, socialise and connect with ones' community. This approach encourages placemaking, sense of belonging and urban vibrancy.
In addition, special attention has been given to circularity. By reusing most of the existing paving materials, we not only preserve historical continuity, but we also significantly reduce the project’s environmental and financial impacts.
Grotestraat - Nijverdal
Our vision for Nijverdal’s city centre demonstrates how nature-based solutions can foster social cohesion and effectively address climate challenges. This approach has already transformed- and will continue to transform- the city centre into a resilient, cohesive space that invites people to stay while bolstering sustainability and climate resilience for the future.
Construction is expected to be completed next year, and we can’t wait to see our vision come to life!
Discover our project for Grotestraat
Once part of a bustling connecting road between Zwolle and Enschede, Grotestraat green-blue streetscape in Nijverdal witnessed a constant flow of fast traffic with no local destination, penetrating the heart of the town. The introduction of a new tunnel provided an opportunity to redirect the focus of the street towards residents and slow traffic. That ambition was taken as the starting point for a connection of the centre to the surrounding landscape, but our ambition went further.
