Meerstad, The Netherlands
The creation of SuperHub in Meerstad, in The Netherlands, was inspired by the mission to better connect the burgeoning Groningen district and transform it into an interactive social space. Meerstad is an up-and-coming district of Groningen, for which De Zwarte Hond, the architects of the project, were commissioned by real estate developer MWPO to design a multifunctional and adaptive central building.
SuperHub Meerstad has been awarded a 2023 International Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
Meerstad is popular for its open space, greenery, and the Woldmeer recreational lake, around which a neighborhood with 5000 new homes will be built in the coming decades. Eventually, the area will grow into a vivid city district. With this future expansion in mind, it is important for the neighborhood to contain an inviting community center, which serves as a place for residents to shop, meet and eat. SuperHub represents a revitalized circular version of the traditional market hall design.
It is expansive and transparent, with a supporting structure made entirely of cross-shaped laminated wooden columns and beams, which give the building a cathedral-like appearance. The large span and nine-meter ceiling height create an exceptionally luminous space and offer the opportunity for flexible layout and usage adaptations in the future.
The large canopy, which extends out more than five meters, provides sun protection and pulls the structure into its green surroundings with the use of elegant columns and net-like wooden trusses. In addition, the cleverly designed cross forms provide the building with stability, so that no additional wind bracing infrastructure is required.
The choice of a wooden construction also ensures a positive climate impact. Furthermore, the roof of SuperHub has been reserved for the placement of solar panels and plants for bees and insects.
The built-in air treatment installation as well as the heat and cold ground storage ensure an optimal and energy-efficient indoor climate. The structure is also designed in such a way that it can absorb and withstand the vibrations of Groningen earthquakes.
SuperHub offers the Meerstad neighborhood an opportunity for varied functionality, and currently includes a supermarket and a café. The open and spacious building functions as a meeting place for residents in addition to its function of providing food. the aim for the architects was to make the shopping experience personal and social again and to offer residents a refreshing alternative to the increasingly popular express delivery services. The impressive spatial qualities of the structure are essential here to fulfill its purpose as an attractive and multifunctional community center.
This way, the supermarket becomes a place for everyday groceries as well as a way for meeting each other, thereby contributing to the social sustainability of the Meerstad neighborhood. SuperHub represents the modern symbiosis of the marketplace and shopping center, where visitors can do their shopping and visit a trendy café. In addition, the structure was built to last and offers the possibility for future adjustments or additions.
The flexible, open layout allows for its functions to be reinvented along with the changing needs of the community, meaning that it will not become outdated or be demolished in the future. The building could for example accommodate a community center, a museum, or even homes in 20 years’ time. In this way, SuperHub manifests itself as a future-proof community hub that will grow along with the development of Meerstad.
Architects: De Zwarte Hond
Lead Architect: Erik Roerdink
General Contractor: Brands Bouw B.V.
Client: MWPO Groningen
Photographers: Ronald Tilleman and Ronald Zijlstra
