Compact City

How can a new neighbourhood combine the energy of the city with the intimacy of a village? For the transformation of the Alfa-College site in Groningen, MORE Architecture developed a vision for a Compact City: a diverse urban district built around human scale, shared spaces and everyday encounters.

Located between Groningen’s historic city centre and the future Suikerzijde district, the area has long been a place where working, learning and living come together. The relocation of the Alfa College creates an opportunity to transform this former school site into a new neighbourhood while preserving its educational identity.

The plan is inspired by a characteristic Groningen urban typology: the large city block with a small-scale, village-like inner world. A ‘family of buildings’ creates around 350 homes, ranging from social housing to free-sector apartments and self-build initiatives. By dividing the area into smaller clusters, each with its own green public space, the neighbourhood can grow step by step.

Education remains at the heart of the new district. Part of the existing school building is retained as a gateway along the bicycle route to Suikerzijde, while new learning and working spaces support local entrepreneurship and student development. Shared facilities—a clubhouse, gardens, workshops and public squares—create places where residents, students and visitors meet.

The Compact City demonstrates how densification can create not just more homes, but a stronger community: a neighbourhood where living, working and learning are effortlessly connected.