Houten

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Coordinates: 52.03° N 5.17° E
Houten

Country	Netherlands
Province	Utrecht
Area (2006)
- Municipality	58.98 km² (22.8 sq mi)
- Land	55.71 km² (21.5 sq mi)
- Water	3.27 km² (1.3 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2007)
- Municipality	45,610
- Density	819/km² (2,121.2/sq mi)
	Source: CBS, Statline.
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Website: www.houten.nl

Houten (pronunciation (help·info)) is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. The expected population in 2015 will be 50,000. The municipality consists of the following towns:

- Houten (pop. 38,062)

- 't Goy (pop. 606 in 2002

- Schalkwijk (pop. 1,946)

- Tull en 't Waal (pop. 665)

1 Houten (town)
2 Famous people from Houten
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Houten (town)

[edit] General information

The main town in the municipality is Houten, a commuter town about 9 km southeast of Utrecht. In 2001, the town had 32,243 inhabitants. The built-up area was 5.08 km² in area, and contained 11,486 residences.^[1] The slightly larger statistical district of Houten had a population of about 39,100 in 2004.^[2]

The village (dark green) and the statistical district (light green) in the municipality of Houten.

[edit] History

Remains of a Roman villa have been found in the old centre, and in the Dark Ages Houten took shape as a rural centre. A lot of elements in present-day Houten are reminders of its history. Prominent is the old centre are 'Het Oude Dorp', the Roman Catholic Church (1884) and the Protestant Church (1563). Former access roads to the old centre are still recognisable by their names, such as the 'Odijkseweg' and 'Loerikseweg'. Houten had many orchards, but few have survived.

[edit] Modern Houten, after WWII

[edit] The expanding city

Modern Houten started to take shape in the last decades of the 20th century (1966-1993). It was designated a 'Groeikern' - a centre of growth - to meet the needs of the growing city of Utrecht.

[edit] Sustainable urban design

Houten is world-famous for its urban design. Distinctive qualities include the excellent accessibiliy of the railway station, green and water zones throughout the whole city, numerous soccer and basketball fields, high standard of accommodation for different groups and the child-friendly bicycle paths. It is one of the safest cities in the Netherlands. Bike-riders and cars are able to avoid each other: an extensive network of bicycle tracks connects the different districts of the town, while cars have to go to the city ring road before they can go to another part of the city.

[edit] Second designation as a centre of urban growth

Until 2008, some 7000 new houses are being built in Houten-Zuid, following the same urban design principles as the existing Houten-Noord, but with some differences. The body of water in the east is large in comparison with water bodies in the old parts of Houten. The pentagonal green zone in Houten-Zuid embracing the centre is different from the greenzone in Houten-Noord, which runs through the whole city in a linear structure, with parks at the ends. Another difference is in some places cars share the road with bicycle paths.

[edit] Transportation

Houten is very well connected to other cities. Twice or four times an hour trains leave for Utrecht and 's Hertogenbosch. The railway will be quadrupled, from two tracks to four. In the meantime a local train runs between Houten and Houten-Castellum station in Houten-Zuid. It is relatively easy to get on the freeway, although more convenient from north-western parts of the city than from the south-east.

[edit] Architecture

Remarkable buildings in Houten include:

- Aluminiumcentre, by Micha de Haas

- Pyramid-shaped apartment complex, Gebroeders Das

[edit] Famous people from Houten

Sanderius Idenatus Bakker, a saint who lived in Houten in the Middle Ages^{[citation needed]}.

[edit] References

^ Statistics Netherlands (CBS), Bevolkingskernen in Nederland 2001 [1]. Statistics are for the continuous built-up area.
^ Statistics Netherlands (CBS), Gemeente Op Maat 2004: Houten [2].

Other statistics are taken from the SDU Staatscourant

[edit] External links

Utrecht Province
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