- A plant-filled, affordable housing skyscraper will be built in Eindhoven, Netherlands.
- Designed by Italian firm Stefano Boeri Architetti, it will feature 125 apartment units priced at below-market rate.
- The tower follows the style of other Boeri buildings, which are also covered in dozens of different species of trees and shrubs.
Eindhoven is one of the greenest cities in the Netherlands. And last year, in its "Green Policy Plan," the Dutch city committed to building even more parks, tree-lined sidewalks, and plant-filled plazas in coming years.
A new skyscraper covered in over 5,000 trees and plants will build on that mission.
Designed by Italian firm Stefano Boeri Architetti, the greenery-covered tower will prioritize affordable housing. Every unit will be designated as "affordable," meaning they will cost less than $870 in monthly rent (i.e. what the city considers below-market rate according to the Dutch Housing Law).
Called the Trudo Vertical Forest, the 19-story skyscraper will house 125 units measuring approximately 540 square feet each. In total, 125 trees and 5,200 shrubs and plants will grow on the apartment balconies.
Lead architect Stefano Boeri is known for his nature-filled buildings. Last June, Stefano Boeri Architetti announced that it would build a "forest city" in Liuzhou, China by 2020 that's made up of towers covered in 40,000 trees and nearly 1 million plants. The skyscraper designs will be similar to the two-tower complex that Boeri designed in Nanjing.
There isn't an exact timeline for construction yet. Social housing foundation Sint Trudo will develop the property.
Developers are building other Boeri towers in Paris, Lausanne, Switzerland and Utrecht, the Netherlands.
Like these projects, Trudo Vertical Forest aims to curb greenhouse-gas emissions in the city. According to its architects, the tower's plants will consume 50 tons of carbon dioxide per year. That's the equivalent of kicking about 10 cars off the road annually.
Trudo Vertical Forest's design "confirms that it is possible to combine the great challenges of climate change with those of housing shortages," Boeri said in a statement. "Urban forestry is not only necessary to improve the environment of the world’s cities but also an opportunity to improve the living conditions of less fortunate city dwellers."
SEE ALSO: Paris is getting a 'White Forest' wooden tower that will feature 2,000 plants — take a look
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