Houten
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Houten | |
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| Country | Netherlands |
| Province | Utrecht |
| Coordinates | |
| Area | 59.07 km² |
| - Land | 58.68 km² |
| - Water | 0.39 km² |
| Population (2005) | 43,551 |
| - Density | 742/km² |
| Mayor | C.H.J. Lamers (CDA) |
| Website | www.houten.nl |
Houten is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. The expected population in 2015 is 50.000. The municipality of Houten consists of the following towns:
- Houten (pop. 38,062)
- Schalkwijk (pop. 1,946)
- Tull en 't Waal (pop. 665)
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[edit] Houten (town)
[edit] General information
The main town of the municipality is Houten. It lies about 9 km southeast of Utrecht. Houten is a commuter town. In 2001, the town of Houten had 32243 inhabitants. The built-up area was 5.08 km², and contained 11486 residences.[1] The slightly larger statistical district of Houten had a population of about 39,100 in 2004.[2]
[edit] History
Remains of a Roman villa have been found in the old centre. Somewhere in the Dark Ages the rural centre Houten took shape. A lot of elements in nowadays Houten remind of the history of Houten. Prominent is the old centre, 'Het Oude Dorp', with the Roman Catholic Church (1884) and the Protestant Church (1563). Former access roads to the old centre are still recognisable by there name, such as the 'Odijkseweg' and 'Loerikseweg'. Houten knew a lot of orchards, few survived.
[edit] Modern Houten, after WWII
[edit] The expanding city
The original design of modern Houten took shape in the last decades of the 20th century (1966-1993). Houten was appointed as a 'Groeikern' - a centre of growth - to meet the needs of the growing city Utrecht.
[edit] Sustainable urban design
Houten is all over the world famous for its urban design. Distinctive qualities include the excellent accessibiliy of the railwaystation, green and water zones throughout the whole city, numerous soccer and basketball fields, high standard accommodation for different groups and the childfriendly bicycle paths. Houten is one of the most safe cities in the Netherlands. Bike-riders and cars are able to avoid each other due to the separate trafficstructure: an extensive network of bicycle tracks connects the different districts of the town, cars have to go to the cityring before they can go to another part of the city.
[edit] Second designation as a centre of urban growth
Until 2008, some 7000 new houses are being built in Houten. The urban design of Houten was the basis for the extension of the city. However, the plan for this part of Houten, 'Houten-Zuid', is in several ways different from 'Houten-Noord'. The waterbody in the east is large in comparison with other waterbodies in the old parts of Houten. The pentagon shaped greenzone in Houten-Zuid embracing the centre is also different from the greenzone in Houten-Noord, running through the whole city in a lineair structure with parks at the ends. Another remarkable difference is the way cars now sometimes share the road with bicycle paths.
[edit] Transportation
Houten is very well connected to other cities. Twice an hour (sometimes four times an hour) a train is going to Utrecht, and in the other direction to 's Hertogenbosch. In the future the railway will be doubled going from two tracks to four. In the meantime a small train is running service between Houten and Houten-Zuid (name of station is 'Houten-Castellum'). It's relatively easy to get on the freeway, although south-eastern citizens need considerably more time than northwestern citizens.
[edit] Architecture
Remarkable buildings in Houten include: - Aluminiumcentre, by Micha de Haas - Piramid shaped apartment complex, Gebroeders Das
[edit] Famous people from Houten
- Sanderius Idenatus Bakker, A famous saint who lived in Houten in the Middle Ages[citation needed].
[edit] References
- ^ Statistics Netherlands (CBS), Bevolkingskernen in Nederland 2001 [1]. Statistics are for the continuous built-up area.
- ^ Statistics Netherlands (CBS), Gemeente Op Maat 2004: Houten [2].
- Other statistics are taken from the SDU Staatscourant
[edit] External links
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