MVRDV and Provast announce a new 61,800m2 residential project, two Grotius towers which offer over 500 apartments. The project is located in The Hague’s CBD between the National Library and a motorway that will be covered in the vicinity of Central Station. Grotius reacts to the typical ‘The Hague tower’, with a focus on the realisation of high quality housing, a subtle façade, with ‘soft’ landing on the street, and a ‘crown’ with large outdoor spaces. Construction start is foreseen for 2018.
MVRDV and Provast respond to these demands for quality residences with a new 61,800m2 mixed-use development of two residential towers – Grotius I and Grotius II, with commercial plinths and parking located on Grotiusplaats, currently a fairly underused area adjacent to the National Library of the Netherlands, the Literary Museum and Palace of Justice, within walking distance to the historic parts of The Hague, home to famous Dutch monuments including the Peace Palace, Royal Palace and the Netherlands Government complex.
Both towers will have over 500 apartments with a mix of social housing and private accommodations, alongside ground-floor commercial plinths making them active social spaces for shopping, dining, contributing to the soon-to-be realised Grotiushof public park which covers the adjacent motorway and bridges the gap to the north side of the centre. The shape of both towers are the results of a study of the optimised connection to the context, formed by the lines of view to the National Library and newly established routes in the neighbourhood.
The façade of both towers will be executed in natural stone with their base consisting of a colour gradient changing from beige to darker hues, and larger windows and specific detailing for a ‘soft’ landing at street level. At the top, the towers ‘evaporate’, with a crown of terraces materialised in wood with distinct greenery visible from the distance. Grotius I is a long and slender volume with an elongated façade forming the wall for Grotiushof, whilst Grotius II is a more compact for an optimised connection to the neighbouring block and street.
Each apartment has extra-large windows that allow for generous views and plenty of natural light and their own private outdoor spaces. The balconies are slightly inclined inwards so that they are sheltered. The top floor terraces distinct wood façade and green terrace creates a connection to nature even though they are sky-high. In contrast, lower floors just above the baseboard have balconies completely on the inside providing additional privacy for residents close to street level. Source and image, Courtesy of MVRDV.