After the construction holidays, construction of the Victoria park in the centre of Eindhoven will start. On the approximately 13,000 square metres of land area of the so-called Emmasingelkwadrant (Emmasingel quadrant) – between the greenery and some two hundred trees – more than 1,500 homes will be built. The artwork ‘Gateway to the Future’, a tribute to Gerard Philips that was unveiled last year, will also be placed in the park.
The statue is currently located in the Gloeilampplantsoen on Strijp-T. According to alderman Rik Thijs of the municipality of Eindhoven, one of the founders of Philips will soon be looking to the future (Strijp-S), with the place where it all started behind him. During a walk across the currently vacant lot, Stijn Steenbakkers, the second alderman involved in Victoria park, acknowledges that the patience of local residents has been put to the test.
Around 2006, new residents moved to this part of the city with the idea that the park would be renovated in the foreseeable future. “It took about twenty years, but now it’s finally going to happen. Some people moved here specifically because a beautiful park with lots of greenery would be built here.
But nobody expected it to take this long.” The Victoria park should be the beating heart of the Emmasingel quadrant from the summer of 2025. This area – at the back of the library – is located between the Willemstraat, the Mathildelaan, the Vonderweg and the Emmasingel.
The Lichtplein.
