Commissioned by the municipality of Lelystad, PosadMaxwan developed the Spatial Vision 2050. The vision has five main pillars and focuses on high-quality densification with accessible nature and a varied tree-lined street structure.
Lelystad is a spacious new town with 85,000 residents. This young city features extensive green spaces and is situated on reclaimed land along the water, in the heart of the country. After sixty years, the city faces challenges related to housing, public amenities, accessibility, climate, and quality of life. How can Lelystad grow in a balanced and high-quality manner, in a way that strengthens the existing city?
The city is named after Cornelis Lely; Cornelis van Eesteren drew up the initial plan for Lelystad. The final design was based on a larger population than actually materialized. That spacious layout, which was once its strength, has since made the management of public spaces disproportionately expensive. Now, Lelystad aims to make a second leap in scale towards becoming a complete and compact city of 120,000 residents.
The pressure to build housing is giving Lelystad new momentum. The Spatial Vision leverages that growth and the city’s spacious layout to improve the spatial quality. Targeted densification creates support for more amenities and brings new vitality.
Five Main Principles
This quality improvement requires more clearly defined areas. What is possible in which locations? And what exactly do we want to protect? Within each of the five main principles, a distinction has therefore been made between areas with their own dynamics, appropriate functions, and specific challenges.
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1. Urban Development
Lelystad is densifying within the existing city rather than expanding across the A6. This prevents fragmentation and car dependency, but above all, it brings vitality to areas that need it. A vibrant city center and lively waterfront will become the places to shop, go out, and socialize, with designated areas for high-rise buildings that attract enough people and generate the support needed for public amenities.
2. A Robust Natural Framework
Nature grows alongside the city and remains close at hand, with a stronger green-blue structure that supports health, biodiversity, and climate adaptation. The vision makes the urban forests between the city and the surrounding countryside more robust. The open polder landscape remains largely open, and large natural areas such as Nieuw Land National Park and the Oostvaardersplassen remain close by. The vision strategically determines where urban activities—such as events, hospitality, or sports—fit within green spaces and where they do not
3. A Strong and Vibrant Economy
Lelystad is strengthening its position in the region with a future-proof economy, more intensive use of existing business parks, and opportunities in transition sectors such as sustainable aviation and circular construction. Education is a crucial building block in this regard. With developments along the waterfront, Lelystad is evolving into a vibrant destination for both its residents and tourists.
4. Sustainable Development
By 2050, Lelystad will generate as much clean energy as possible using solar and wind power, with storage in batteries and hydrogen on its own land. The city will become climate-resilient, guided by the principles of water and soil, and will commit to a circular economy.
5. Accessible Infrastructure
Everyone will travel efficiently, safely, and sustainably. The excessively wide avenues will be downsized to make way for bike paths, bus lanes, and—in areas such as Visarenddreef and Kustendreef—residential housing. The city center will become low-traffic, with parking available along the city ring road. By bike, virtually everything is within reach: Lelystad will become a 15-minute city.
In Lelystad, density isn't the goal, it's the means. By growing inward rather than sprawling across the A6, the city builds the critical mass that amenities and public transport need, makes smarter use of existing infrastructure, and keeps maintenance affordable. Because the city is not expanding outward, green spaces and the landscape are spared from urban sprawl. Density doesn't just make Lelystad bigger, it makes it more complete and vibrant.
