In the dunes a network of footpaths connects town and beach, and hidden among the undulating dunes are the five entrances to the parking garage Coastal Work Katwijk. They have modest proportions and looks, adaptive to the landscape. Their design is waved in harmony with the sea and the dunes, providing a pleasant access to the garage. The staircases are wide enough to allow daylight to enter in abundance. The design of the entry points for cars refer to the environment in an abstract way. Variations in the patterns of the perforated steel sheets suggest the shifting sands in the dunes, offering an echo of the landscape.
In the design the underground world was considered not just for its function, but as a space to be in its own right, requiring a careful treatment. Being close to the sea, among the dunes, in the town of Katwijk, is a feeling that should be permanently felt while being underground, and that guided the choice for the quality and the colour of the concrete, the pattern and colour in the cobbling, the design of the lighting and way finding. The straight and symmetrical lay out of the garage is helpful. The graphic elements and contrast in colours help the users to find their way easily and casually. There is a town side and a seaside to the garage. Daylight falling in through the glass pavilions lead to the dunes, where we are gripped by the wind, halfway beach and land, town and sea.
Katwijk is protected from the sea by a more robust dike, but the dike is hidden beneath the extension of the dune area. Without being visually intrusive or even demanding attention the coast is reinforced, the boulevard widened, parking capacity hugely extended and the landscape made even more inviting. That is an example of ingenious Dutch design and construction in a through and through Dutch location.
