Expansion Of NBC De Oostvaarders / Woonwerk Architecten

Architects: Woonwerk Architecten
Area: 1,321 m²
Year: 2025
Photography: Luuk Kramer, Ben te Raa, Feenstra Fotografie
Lead Architects: Evelien Van Veen, Robby Smith, Martina Stenta, Floor van de Lustgraaf, Pim Pelt
Design Team: Evelien Van Veen, Robby Smith, Martina Stenta, Floor van de Lustgraaf, Pim Pelt
Contractor: Prins Bouw
Structural Engineering: ABT
Landscape Architects: EDM Landschap in collaboration with Bureau Nieuwe Gracht and Lith Advies
Interior Design: MARS Interieurarchitecten
Exhibition Design: Podium
Client: Municipality of Almere
Location: Oostvaardersbosplaats 1, Almere
Country: Netherlands

The expansion of the Nature Experience Center De Oostvaarders in Almere marks a new phase for one of the Netherlands’ most significant natural landmarks. Designed by Woonwerk Architecten, the project doubles the size of the original 2008 building to meet growing public interest in the Oostvaardersplassen, now part of Nieuw Land National Park. The new design introduces flexible educational spaces, observation rooms, a restaurant, and meeting areas, reinforcing the center’s role as both a social and ecological hub. Maintaining the Cross-Laminated Timber structure and black-stained façade, the expansion emphasizes harmony with its setting while enhancing visitor experience and operational capacity. Sustainability, biodiversity, and collaboration define the project’s essence, establishing the building as an enduring symbol of Almere’s identity and its commitment to nature-inclusive design.

Expansion of nbc de oostvaarders / woonwerk architecten

Standing at the junction of city and nature, the expanded Nature Experience Center De Oostvaarders continues to serve as a vital threshold between the urban fabric of Almere and the vast landscape of the Oostvaardersplassen. Woonwerk Architecten approached the project as both an architectural renewal and an ecological statement, translating the growing demand for public engagement into a design that connects people and environment through spatial clarity and material restraint.

The new addition respects the integrity of the original vertical beacon while introducing a horizontal extension that opens the building toward the landscape. This gesture softens the transition between structure and terrain, allowing the architecture to dissolve gradually into its surroundings. The use of black-stained timber and vertical detailing ensures visual continuity, while subtle adjustments in form and proportion create a calm, cohesive identity suited to its natural context.

A central design element—the pergola with its continuous bench and terrace—extends the building’s social dimension. Acting as a mediating threshold between interior and exterior, it provides shelter, seating, and a place for spontaneous encounters. The terrace invites visitors to pause before setting out into the reserve or to reflect upon return, reinforcing the building’s role as both gateway and gathering place.

Internally, circulation has been reorganized to optimize the visitor journey. The entrance now leads directly to a panoramic viewing room that opens to the wetlands, framing the landscape as a living exhibition. The upper level accommodates an auditorium, exhibition spaces, and an open-air platform, all oriented toward the horizon. Light, reflection, and sightlines form the primary materials of experience, ensuring that the architecture amplifies rather than competes with the spectacle of nature.

Sustainability underpins every architectural choice. The project builds on the original’s pioneering use of Cross-Laminated Timber, an approach that aligns durability with ecological consciousness. New fire regulations prompted façade renewal, which Woonwerk used as an opportunity to embed nesting facilities for bats, owls, and sparrows. The planted roof introduces a dynamic layer of native herbs and flowers, while the irregular paving layout evokes the organic patterns of the surrounding terrain.

The landscape design, developed by EDM Landschap with Bureau Nieuwe Gracht and Lith Advies, reinforces the building’s ecological narrative. Woodland clusters, open grasslands, and solitary trees create a microcosm of the reserve’s ecosystems, blending human access with habitat restoration. Together, architecture and landscape articulate a shared vision of coexistence, where built form and natural process support one another in a continuous dialogue.

Through this expansion, De Oostvaarders has evolved from a visitor center into a collaborative institution. It now accommodates partners such as Stad & Natuur Almere, Staatsbosbeheer, and Vogelwacht, providing spaces for research, education, and community engagement. Woonwerk Architecten’s design transcends its functional brief to become an emblem of Almere’s environmental identity—a building that extends the city’s horizon while inviting its inhabitants to rediscover the landscape that defines it.