Almere Station square

Their job complete, the Ijsselmeerpolders Development Authority wished to donate a bench to the brand-new town of Almere as a going-away present. The chosen site was a 'windswept hole'. Bakker reacted to the request by making a book of visual Impressions of beautiful urban plazas. This landed Bakker the commission to design the entire square. The plan proceeds from a system of axes and sight lines. Light masts six metres highdraw the attention away from the ugly facades to the pedestrian area with six fountains. The stainless steel benches, waste baskets and light masts barricade this area against lorries bringing supplies. The road through the square is configured as a sunken street marked out with sharp-edged blue-stone. The triangular constructional element of the station roof informed the design of the street furniture.