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Netherlands - Utrecht

Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands (© goga18128/Bigstock)
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In: Featured locations

Utrecht is the fourth largest city in the Netherlands and its metro area has a population of c. 600,000. Its science park, Utrecht Science Park (USP), is the largest science park in the Netherlands with two overlapping activities, which are life sciences and sustainability. The science park has its main location on the east side of the City of Utrecht formerly known as “De Uithof ” and a satellite location called Utrecht Science Park Bilthoven (USPB). Both locations complement each other in the field of life sciences. The main location in Utrecht has its focus on healthcare, education, and early-stage R&D. The activities on the satellite location USPB are related to product development, product improvement, and vaccine production. Now USP is redeveloping and developing new facilities on both locations mostly for startups and growth companies. There is limited space for new buildings for large or mature companies. Therefore, USP is also searching for new satellite locations in the region to facilitate future growth.

Transformation: From Rural Land to Campus to Green Science Park

The start of the science park can be dated back to the late 1950s, when the University of Utrecht needed to relocate some of their faculties as there was no room for growth in the inner city of Utrecht. The Dutch government acquired rural land east of the city and created the neighbourhood “De Uithof ”, named after a local farm. The original urban plan focused on a small part of the neighbourhood and was designed with tight geometry, where the roads ran exactly north-south and east-west. The streets were named after famous foreign universities such as Harvard and Heidelberg. The first wooden educational buildings were erected in the Johannapolder near the farm “De Uithof ”. The neighbourhood developed further as more faculties from the Utrecht University relocated and also a broader range of educational institutions (HU University of Applied Sciences), hospitals, medical facilities, medical institutions, commercial companies and student accommodations were added. Furthermore, additional services were established to cater to the needs of the broader community. Since 1990 the development of the park was led by the urban development plan of Rem Koolhaas (OMA).

In 2012 the foundation Utrecht Science Park was established by the owners of the land (Utrecht University, University Medical Centre Utrecht and the Municipality of Utrecht) together with the HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht and Province of Utrecht. The aim of the foundation is to realise a leading international environment for the life sciences, health and sustainability cluster. The satellite location in Bilthoven was formalised in 2017 through the cooperation agreement with Poonawalla Science Park B.V. who is the owner of the 22 ha (54 acres) of land and its facilities. Cyrus Poonawalla Group (India) acquired the bio-engineering and pharmaceutical company Bilthoven Biologicals (BBio) in 2012, which has a focus on vaccine production. In 2018 the name of the neighbourhood formerly known as “De Uithof ” was formally changed to Utrecht Science Park.

R&D focus on life sciences

USP has a focus on specific fields of life sciences research and development such as Personalised Medicine & Healthcare (image-guided interventions, precision health & medicine, specialised nutrition), Molecular Life Sciences, Regenerative Medicine & Stem Cells (organoids, biofabrication) and Healthcare Innovation (e-health, medical technology). The focus areas One Health (human health, veterinary health and healthy environment), Healthy Urban Living and Future Food overlap with Sustainability, the second pillar of the science park.

The research and development in life sciences is supported through the Utrecht Centre for Entrepreneurship, which offers entrepreneurial programmes for students and staff and the Career Services programme facilitates traineeships for all types of students. The eco-system is supported by a broad array of educational programmes at Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD level including an extensive range of English language programmes. The Graduate School of Life Sciences manages all education programmes in the life sciences area and has gained a strong international reputation in biomedical and life sciences education and research.

Long term plans

USP has an investment programme for the period of 2020 to 2025, with a total budget of €2.1 billion (£1.8 billion), which includes both public and private projects. Public projects are mostly centred on the new building for the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) that will also house the Netherlands Commission on Genetic Modification (COGEM). The building is an 18-storey glass tower including offices and laboratories. The investment programme also includes the redevelopment of the Willem C. Van Unnik (UU) and UMC Utrecht buildings.

Photo of Danone, Utrecht
Danone, Utrecht

Private projects are: The new building of the International School Utrecht (ISUtrecht), where 1,200 students will be located on Cambridgelaan. Construction of the school is expected to start in the autumn of 2023 and opening date is expected in 2026.

The redevelopment of Hugo R.Kruyt Building (UU Geosciences) to Life Sciences Building.

The “High Five” student accommodation on Cambridgelaan. The complex is called “High Five” as it refers to the fifth permanent student accommodation. It will consist of two towers with a height of 74 meters (243 feet).

The Accelerator building opened in 2022. The building was developed by Kadans Science Partner and is also the operator. It offers space to the life science companies Genmab, Merus and start-ups / scale-ups who want to accelerate their development. The design is based on the vision of Genmab and Merus: improving patients’ lives by developing innovative therapies for the treatment of cancer, partly by entering valuable partnerships.

Kadans Science Park was selected to develop a new multi-functional building on plot 32 at the end of 2021.The new building shall be developed as “Plus Ultra Utrecht” with 22,880 sq m (246,280 sq ft) of office and laboratory space.

In September 2022, the Utrecht City Council approved the “Utrecht Science Park Spatial Planning Vision 2040”. This long-term vision was formulated by the university, UMC Utrecht, the Utrecht Science Park Foundation and several other stakeholders such as users, residents and neighbours.

The Vision 2040 outlines how USP will manage the future development and growth of the science park. Creative ways have been formulated to utilise the scarce space with an increasing number of students and other inhabitants. Many university buildings are reaching the end of their economic life, but there is a preference to redevelop the buildings instead of demolishing them and build new ones. This means an intensive programme of (temporary) relocations. The spatial planning envisages the creation of a central heart for Utrecht Science Park, where the Heidelberglaan serves as the main axis. To make this happen some older buildings will be demolished to make room for new plazas. According to Vision 2040, these plazas will each have their own function and personality but will always invite people to come together and spend time there. This will give the public spaces around the central boulevard a more connective role as a place for people to meet one another.

Enhancing the greenery throughout the campus by improving access and visibility to the Botanic Gardens, a hidden gem of Utrecht Science Park, is another essential element. This also includes relocating and redesigning the Evolution Garden and creating a stunning new park for leisure activities, all while connecting different locations seamlessly.

In the coming years there will be intensive construction activities, but Vision 2040 gives a clear view on how the science park becomes more attractive with easy, logical connections between all the buildings. A campus that offers space to meet and to collaborate across the borders between scientific disciplines, between students and businesses, between science and real-world practice, and all relevant stakeholders. In the meantime, USP is also looking for new satellite locations such as in Bilthoven as well as other ways to grow the brand of USP. Possible areas in the vicinity can be Utrecht Rijnsweerd and TNO-location Zeist.

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