MANOE RUHE

urban designer & researcher

The urban memory of Transvaal and the Schilderswijk

A research into the urban and ethnographic tissues of two quarters in The Hague in the Netherlands, which serve as a catalyst for the restructuring of the public domain between the districts. The daily life of the residents of Transvaal and the Schilderswijk has been ignored by planners for a long time. There is still a lack of specific knowledge in town planning about the area and the residents. The town planner has the ability to acquire more knowledge of the specific qualities of an existing quarter, by analysing the urban memory. In this research the morphology of the physical and symbolic qualities in the districts Transvaal and the Schilderswijk becomes visible.

The qualities are especially found in the "strip zone", an area which lays in between the two districts. At the moment there is a need to restructure the area. The strip zone is a suitable location, where with the current qualities used as the basis, an improvement of quality can be made. The strip zone has been developed as the centre for both districts. With the use of little inventions an attractive climate is created for existing and new parties who are willing to investigate in the districts. There is both in the design a fixed program and space that offers a more free program and design.