OMA & David Gianotten will transform Breda’s once enclosed Boschpoort judicial compound and its iconic Koepel panopticon into a frequented place in the city. In the new Koepel District with housing, commercial spaces, and cultural events, repurposed monuments and new buildings form a prominent green outdoor space for public activities.Breda’s Koepel panopticon, first built in 1886 by Dutch architect Johan Metzelaar, is one of the three existing panopticons in the Netherlands that epitomize the architecture of surveillance conceptualized by Jeremy Bentham. With an iconic dome 53m in diameter, it was part of the Boschpoort judicial compound in the outskirts of Breda and has housed well-known WWII convicts among other inmates. As Breda’s urban fabric expanded throughout the twentieth century, the closed-off Boschpoort judicial compound has become part of the old city center when it closed in 2016. Earlier this year, the three-hectare site was acquired by Being & VDD Project Development for realization of a mixed-use district based on OMA’s design.OMA’s design team is led by David Gianotten and Project Architect Sandra Bsat. The project is developed by Being & VDD Project Development in collaboration with B-Architecten and DELVA Landscape Architecture & Urbanism.The Koepel panopticon currently hosts 380 Ukrainian refugees, whose needs and privacy will be fully respected during the project’s development.
OMA & David Gianotten will transform Breda’s once enclosed Boschpoort judicial compound and its iconic Koepel panopticon into a frequented place in the city. In the new Koepel District with housing, commercial spaces, and cultural events, repurposed monuments and new buildings form a prominent green outdoor space for public activities.Breda’s Koepel panopticon, first built in 1886 by Dutch architect Johan Metzelaar, is one of the three existing panopticons in the Netherlands that epitomize the architecture of surveillance conceptualized by Jeremy Bentham. With an iconic dome 53m in diameter, it was part of the Boschpoort judicial compound in the outskirts of Breda and has housed well-known WWII convicts among other inmates. As Breda’s urban fabric expanded throughout the twentieth century, the closed-off Boschpoort judicial compound has become part of the old city center when it closed in 2016. Earlier this year, the three-hectare site was acquired by Being & VDD Project Development for realization of a mixed-use district based on OMA’s design.OMA’s design team is led by David Gianotten and Project Architect Sandra Bsat. The project is developed by Being & VDD Project Development in collaboration with B-Architecten and DELVA Landscape Architecture & Urbanism.The Koepel panopticon currently hosts 380 Ukrainian refugees, whose needs and privacy will be fully respected during the project’s development.
