The first clear picture of what Hoog-Catharijne – the new district around the Utrecht station – will become can be found in the annual report of the NV Levensverzekering Maatschappij Utrecht published today. Since the grand plan of NV Empeo, a subsidiary of the United Companies Bredero, was publicized in October 1962, feverish work has been done on further developing ideas regarding the renewal of the station and surroundings. This has meant that construction of a new building for the Ziekenzorg association will start this year on the corner of the Catharijnesingel and the Moreelsepark. This was reported by the Utrechtsch Nieuwsblad on Friday, May 8, 1964.
A fascinating picture of the future can already be seen on page 1 in a drawing by the Das brothers, also taken from the Utrecht annual report. (see below)
Information evenings are held by the municipality in collaboration with NV Empeo for the owners and tenants of the buildings and homes in the station district. During these evenings, interested parties can be informed about the procedure to be followed for demolition and reconstruction.
The Hoog-Catharijne plan will require an investment of 220 million guilders. The financing is provided by a separate company in which Bredero and the Fries-Groningen mortgage bank participate. Through this unique plan, the city of Utrecht is given the opportunity to renew an old part of the city in a way that is unknown in our national history.
Hoog-Catharijne is bordered in the west by the Croeselaan. The Van Sijpesteyn Barracks will be demolished and offices and residential blocks, a parking garage and, most importantly, a new entrance to the station, which is also to be completely renovated, will be built on the vacated land. In the east the border is with the Vreeburg.
A connection with both parts of the city will be established over the Catharijnesingel, which is to be filled in, via an elevated pedestrian crosswalk. This starts at the station and runs six meters above the ground behind the trade fair building to Achter Clarenburg. This old part of the city will also be demolished and will be connected to the Mariaplaats through a breakthrough. The traffic facility planned by the municipal council in the form of constructing a ring road is particularly important for Hoog-Catharijne in the north, where a second tunnel will be built under the railway.
In what time frame do the designers think they can realize their biggest plans? A schedule has been designed for a period of 10 to 15 years and they want to stick to this schedule as strictly as possible. It is possible to exchange parts of the plan compared to the implementation, so that there does not have to be too much stagnation if a certain part cannot be implemented at the desired time.
