Picture a place where the past and present intertwine. Welcome to the Hilversumse Meent a unique residential area nestled near Bussum. It’s not just a neighborhood. It’s a story etched in land and time. The Hilversumse Meent was built on ancient meent grounds. These were common grazing lands belonging to the Erfgooiers. These were Gooise farmers. They owned the land generation after generation. Outsiders couldn’t use it. The Erfgooiers’ ownership ended in 1912. The Erfgooiers-vereniging Vereniging Stad en Lande van Gooiland then owned 3300 hectares of meent grounds. The Hilversumse Meent’s development started much later. In 1974-1978 this area was transformed into a residential area.
The Hilversumse Meent is an unusual place. It’s almost an exclave. It’s almost entirely surrounded by other municipalities. It’s only connected to the rest of Hilversum by a narrow strip of land. This connection lies south of the neighborhood. It’s near the French Kampweg. It also connects to the Bantam forest area. The Hilversumse Meent borders Bussum on its entire east side. The boundary is a historical earth wall the Koedijk. The neighborhood is much closer to Bussum than to Hilversum. It is separated from Bussum’s Het Spiegel neighborhood. Some smaller meadows separate them. There’s also the former Cruysbergen sand pit and the Gijzenveen. The Hilversumse Meent is also closer to Bussum’s train stations. These are Naarden-Bussum and Bussum-Zuid. They are closer than Hilversum’s stations.
The Hilversumse Meent isn’t just geographically unique. Its layout is equally distinctive. It’s a so-called cauliflower neighborhood. This means it has winding streets instead of straight ones. The streets are named after insects and plants. The Bijenmeent Goudwespmeent and Hommelmeent for example are insect names. Biezenmeent Bloemenmeent and Distelmeent are plant names. The Wandelmeent the heart of the area is where the first central living project in the Netherlands was built. It’s quite something to see. This project had 50 homes. A green belt surrounds the entire neighborhood. This is 21 hectares with 4 hectares of water forming a scenic moat.
Imagine the people who lived here. The families who raised their children here. The history unfolds before you. The Hilversumse Meent is more than houses and streets. It’s a testament to careful planning. It blends nature and community. The original plan was to build 5000 homes. This plan caused major opposition. Natuurmonumenten also opposed it. Ultimately a compromise was reached. The area now has 1661 homes. Almost as many social housing units as privately owned homes. The Hilversumse Meent. A community built on a past. A place for a bright future.