The former head office of Philips in Eindhoven is being converted into an apartment complex with 456 temporary student residences. According to the municipality of Eindhoven, the intention is that students can go there from next academic year. They can live there for three to five years.
The office building, which was taken into use in 1964, was the head office of Philips Netherlands until 2001, writes Omroep Brabant. Last February, the office building was also designated a national monument. The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands sees the building as an icon for Eindhoven, it received the status mainly because of the experimental construction technique.
According to alderman Mieke Verhees, Eindhoven is facing a major housing shortage. “Also for students. It will take a few years before the Philips office gets its new destination,” she says. “That is why I have contacted the owners of the building and TU Eindhoven to see what is possible in the meantime.”
Noise nuisance and litter
The former 15 office floors are being converted into student rooms. The idea is that groups of eight to ten students will live there, who will share the sanitary facilities and the kitchen. TU Delft will continue to be involved in the complex after the renovation and will contribute to the management of the building, among other things.
“We will use old-year students per floor as contact persons with the manager,” says Jan-Willem Schellekens, responsible for real estate at the university. “This should provide clarity about internal regulations and help to form a close-knit student community.”
The current owner of the former head office, Ten Brinke/BPRE, will pay for the temporary furnishing of the building. “As a university, we are not allowed to invest in student housing ourselves,” says Schellekens. A neighborhood meeting will be organized where local residents can share their concerns and ideas, according to the municipality. For example, there is talk about noise nuisance and ways to combat litter.
- Protest is useless, no permission for student housing in Amstelveen
- Students are more likely to look for a room outside the city where they are studying
- National shortage of student housing increased by 20 percent to 26,500
