130 Hospital site Damme

The master plan of Damme sets out an ambitious densification plan for the previous Saint John’s hospital site and its garden. The new development is of a scale unprecedented for the city Damme. This exceptional scale and the characteristics of the surroundings prompted us to create an arrangement of volumes with different heights and ridge directions that together form an ensemble that respects the scale and grain of the existing context. We looked at the different roof shapes found in the city, where steep gabled roofs with varying ridge heights and directions set the tone. Facades in brown-red brick, wooden joinery and sloping roofs with red clay tiles honour the existing facades of Damme and don’t distract attention from the exceptional architecture of the Saint John’s hospital.

To live in a historical context and interweave with the neighbourhood, social cohesion across the site is a key principle in the design. Therefore, each dwelling is given an entrance door on the street to have a direct relationship to the public space. When you step outside, you are in the city.

The outdoor spaces of the hospital site are all characterised by a distinct atmosphere and their own historical story. With the redevelopment of the site, we wish to develop a sequence of several garden rooms where the historical function is revived and which highlight the late medieval buildings. A walk through the buildings and garden rooms will allow you to discover the hospital site with its rich history. A green lung in the centre of Damme where there is room for meeting, relaxation and nature development.