Kessel - care neighbourhood

The complete study and design assignment for drawing up a vision for a new care neighborhood and the new construction of a community care home, a residential care center and a group care home in Kessel was awarded to the TM NU architectuuratelier - Raamwerk - Plusoffice architects in collaboration with Plant en Houtgoed, ELD and Ingenium.

Building on the image quality plan for the core of Kessel, the renewal of the care campus is used to strengthen the relationship between Kessel-Village and the Lindekensbeek valley. On the flank between the main street of Kessel and the wet valley there are many opportunities to develop a new fabric in which car traffic is not dominant. With their proposal, the designers simultaneously want to realize an added value for the rural village of Kessel and create a generous place that stimulates encounters between the residents and the neighborhood and activities to everyone’s ability.

The concept is conceived as a well-considered linking of four building sections, each with a specific function and character. The residential building, the center for short stay and day care linked to the central reception, and the cafeteria with the residential care apartments on top are connected by a winter garden on the second floor and a logistic connection via the basement. The local service center is placed on the site as a fourth independent volume and forms an open house for the neighborhood. Together, the four building sections form an ensemble around a forecourt, a village balcony to the landscape.

The new programs are grafted onto the village structure, with a varied play of front and rear sides in ever-changing constellations. From the stream valley this creates a rhythm of slender volumes with generous open spaces. The residential building is positioned on the axis between the forecourt with its balcony facing the landscape and the footpath connecting Kessel village with the valley. The over-angle arrangement creates a varied relationship with the immediate surroundings and a clear centralized plan. Three diagonally connected living spaces form the hub. This is where the distribution kitchen is located, an open kitchen for the two living groups. As the heart of the residential building, this kitchen allows the residents to be involved in the cooking process.

The residential building is connected to the other volumes by means of a winter garden, a light structure that not only functions as a circulation area, but also as a meeting place. As an extension of the public domain, it forms the most public axis in the building. The orientation and materialization provide a natural, pleasant climate.

For the local service center in combination with the medical block, a reuse strategy is used. Based on the conviction that the existing building, provided that it is thoroughly adapted, can still be suitable for a number of functions, a circular approach has been elaborated in which part of the shell is given a second life.

Dialogue and participation are central to the process of arriving at a supported result. By setting up a project studio on the project site, the aim is to allow all actors to consult the state of affairs at any time and to participate in workshops.

By constructing a full-fledged care neighbourhood, the non-profit association Zorggroep Zusters van Berlaar (Care group Sisters of Berlaar) wants to take a new step in supporting the residents of Kessel and its surroundings, and this, on an entirely renovated site located centrally in the rural village centre.

This exceptional location, with a view of the green valley of the Lindekensbeek, has many assets, but also poses challenges: the accessibility of the care neighbourhood, the relation with the village and with the historical landscape, the relation and opportunities for social integration with the planned new construction for the Goezo Kessel primary school. After all, the care neighbourhood will share the valley area with this new-build school.

The ambition of the Zorggroep is to turn this care neighbourhood into a full-fledged and integrated part of the village and to create a sustainable environment where everyone feels welcome and is happy to stay.

The care neighbourhood

The care neighbourhood as a whole must first be examined at the level of the master plan. This should result in a logical structure that allows the old buildings to keep operating during the building work, with attention being paid to accessibility.

The aim is to arrive at a strong landscaping approach for the entire site, with a high-quality green staying space that connects the care neighbourhood, the village and the open space. The appropriate modes of transport should be accommodated here.

The neighbourhood care home: a local services centre, a day-care centre and a short-stay home under a single roof.

The neighbourhood care home is the beating heart of the site: it connects the neighbourhood and the new care centre. It includes a local services centre that comprises a multipurpose hall that is multifunctional and divisible and can therefore also be made available to the local associations and schools of Kessel. By offering educational and recreational activities (guest speakers, hobby club, computer classes, etc.) and setting up a neighbourhood restaurant, the aim is above all to create a pleasant meeting place for the elderly in the neighbourhood.

People over 65 who live at home and who want to enjoy such activities but need more support to do so should be welcome here. The day-care centre should provide an adapted programme, with extra time and space for care moments, for its two residential groups of ten people each.

If there is need for a full-fledged stay for a shorter period of time, the 13 short-stay rooms offer a solution. Home nursing should also have its place within this complex.

The new Sint-Jozef residential care centre

When it is no longer possible to live independently at home, residents can always choose to remain permanently at the Sint-Jozef residential care centre. This centre is organized in residential groups of 8 to 12 people each. Two or more residential groups are combined according to organization and logistics. The roughly 80 residential care rooms each have a net surface area of about 27 m².

In addition, the commissioning authority also wants to provide 8 to 12 care flats of about 50 m². Together, the flats form a ‘group home’ and all adjoin a communal living space and kitchen. The objective here is to appeal to a broader target group, including people with a chronic demand for care. 

A wider offer – both within the residential part and outside it – will lead to more visitors. Sufficient parking facilities should be provided for this purpose.

Since the kitchen is not only responsible for preparing the meals for the residential care centre itself but also for the neighbourhood restaurant, the day-care centre and the campus in Nijlen, a large central kitchen with a capacity of about 500 meals a day is essential. 

The new site (93 residential units + 13 short-stay rooms + local services centre + day-care centre with 20 places and home nursing) is connected to the 16 existing assisted-living homes in Huize Biddeloo.

For all this, the Zorggroep is seeking a functional, flexible and financially feasible spatial concept that makes it possible to work in a cost-efficient manner so that the residents of Kessel can continue to enjoy all the lovely things that their familiar surroundings have to offer at an affordable daily rate.

Selection criteria

• The general design-based expertise with regard to the project assignment
• The professional competence
• The relevant experience 

Award criteria

1. The quality of the concept and vision development and the design research in light of the ambitions and expectations of the public commissioning authority as formulated in the specifications:
   a. In a broad social context
   b. Applied more functionally to the practical requirements of the user
2. Process-orientation and process-readiness
3. The approach to sustainability
4. The estimate of the project cost
5. The fee

The weighting of the respective criteria has been determined as follows: 4/3/2/2/1. The weighting of the subcriteria is 1.