For the surroundings of the railway station in Alphen aan den Rijn, KuiperCompagnons was assigned to elaborate the existing and preset master plan into an image quality plan and zoning plan.

General
The station surroundings in Alphen aan den Rijn is an area of more than 20 hectares which is situated between the city centre of Alphen aan den Rijn and the new housing suburb of Kerk en Zanen. The area is split in two by the railway line which runs from Leiden to Utrecht. In the centre of the area there is an NS railway station for the Rijn-Gouwe line and the main bus station of Alphen aan den Rijn.
The master plan serves as the development framework for the filling-in of the still largely undeveloped site in the heart of the municipality. The master plan mentions the making up of lost ground where it concerns urban facilities. In the plan, space is provided for 52,500 m2 g.f.a. for office development, 9,000 m2 g.f.a. for commercial space and approximately 746 residences. With the realisation of the master plan for the station surroundings, Alphen aan den Rijn will be gaining an area which has a combined schedule for living, working, catering establishments and general facilities. In the future, the station surroundings will, taking the positioning and function into consideration, provide an important contribution to the general impression of Alphen aan den Rijn and will be the link between the city centre and the suburb of Kerk en Zanen.
The planning area demands a high quality. The aspirations are to create a certain formal urban design with nice buildings and beautiful streets and a carefully designed public space.
Aside from the residential and working functions, the area will provide for many kinds of public functions such as catering establishments and service providing functions. Everything must be arranged around a spatially contained habitable area (station square) and with a certain unison through the design of the buildings. Unity and diversity seem to be two opposing definitions but are, of course, the starting point.

Image Quality Plan
The image quality plan is a comprehensive development concept which provides a detailed elaboration of the master plan in respect of the built-up area and layout of the public area. It is a reference framework for the designing of new construction plans and acts as a guideline in the drawing up of development plans for the public space. A large degree of individuality and a good correspondence with the present urban design and architectural set-up will be incorporated as quality aspects.

Zoning Plan
The zoning plan 'Station surroundings' is being drawn up parallel to the image quality plan. The zoning plan makes up the planning framework in which the various functions will be fitted-in in a comprehensive manner. Moreover, the zoning plan by definition, is the means with which desired developments can be steered and undesirable developments can be excluded.
The zoning plan for the station surroundings concerns a complex and dynamic project, which involves a number of spatial claims and continuous negotiations with private parties. Hence there has been an ongoing search for an optimum combination of functions. In connection with the negotiations, the balance between the flexibility in the elaboration and the legal certainty towards the partners is of vital importance. A clear mapping and well laid-out regulations have served well here.