14
KALVEKEETDIJK
KnokkeCollective living in a park landscape
The project at the Kalvekeetdijk in Knokke-Heist introduces an alternative form of housing in which the qualities of a ground-level home are combined with those of a collective housing project. Instead of individual gardens along a street, a communal park forms the spatial carrier of the project. Within this green landscape, thirty semi-detached houses will be planted, which together form one coherent architectural and landscape whole.
The collectivity is not limited to the greenery. The project also provides shared facilities such as a co-space, a water feature, collective waste management, visitor parking and an underground parking garage for residents with bicycle facilities.
Project information
| Project |
Project
Collective project with 30 semi-detached houses |
|---|---|
| Location |
Location
Kalvekeetdijk 8300 KNOKKE-HEIST |
| Builder |
Builder
Zout Promotions NV |
| Architect |
Architect
Markland (member of Link Lab)
|
| Interior |
Interior
Stay Studio (member of Link Lab)
|
| Program |
Program Construction of a residential project with 30 dwellings |
| Gross floor area (phase 1) |
Gross floor area (phase 1)
21,136 m² (excluding basements) |
| Site surface area |
Site surface area
41.105 m² |
| Green area |
Green area
approx. 2 ha |
| Status |
Status
Permitted, implementation file in preparation |
| Stability |
Stability
BM Engineering |
| Environmental construction |
Environmental construction
burO Green |
| EPB |
EPB
Cubic |
| Structural contractor |
Structural contractor
Christiaens bouw |
| Site area |
Site area
8.154m2 |
| Status |
Status
Delivered 2025 |
Site
The project site is located on the Kalvekeetdijk in Knokke-Heist, near the AZ Zeno, about 2 km from the Lippenslaan and 1.3 km from the center of Westkapelle. The site is located in a transition area between residential development and infrastructure along the edge of the coastal community.
The existing situation includes several buildings and outbuildings, including three houses, a shed and gardens. Surrounding the site are detached homes, commercial sheds and technical infrastructure. Access to the project is via the Kalvekeetdijk, which will be redesigned with a central bicycle connection in the future.
Layout
All dwellings will be oriented towards the car-free central inner area and will be accessed via the inner garden. This creates a clear relationship between the homes and the collective landscape.
To ensure privacy within this collective model, several design principles are applied. The houses are slightly shifted relative to each other so that terraces are never directly adjacent. In addition, the wooden terraces are slightly elevated, creating a subtle visual and physical transition between the private and collective space.
Different housing types are provided within the project. In the eastern and western clusters, a typology with living spaces on the first floor is applied. In these bell-floor dwellings, the spacious terrace is located on the second floor and is oriented to the west. Of the thirty dwellings, eleven follow this typology.
Each house has a private outdoor space with a favorable orientation and is conceived according to an open plan principle. In addition, all homes have a garage and a basement space that can be used as storage or laundry room.
Woonconcept
The project at the Kalvekeetdijk in Knokke-Heist introduces a new vision of living in which the qualities of a ground-level home are combined with the advantages of collective living. Instead of individual gardens on a public street, the entire site is conceived as one collective park in which thirty homes find their place. The greenery forms the spatial carrier of the project and creates a coherent landscape and architectural whole.
The collectivity is not limited to the garden alone, but also includes shared facilities such as a co-space, a water feature, collective waste management, visitor parking and an underground parking garage for residents with bicycle facilities. The project remains open and accessible and is deliberately not conceived as an enclosed residential cluster.
Landscape and water management
The landscape design starts from an analysis of the existing planting on the site. Valuable trees are retained to the maximum extent possible and supplemented by new plantings. The site is composed of three zones: an entrance zone on the street side with visitor parking and access to the underground parking, a car-free central courtyard garden and a green border that frames the project in terms of landscape.
Because much of the inner area lies above an underground parking garage, the landscape is conceived as an intensive roof garden. Variations in substrate thickness allow ornamental grasses, perennials and trees to be integrated. Rainwater is collected locally through infiltration in the green areas and buffering in canals and retention systems.
