Overtreders W has designed The Place to Be in Zelhem, Netherlands.

On the site of a derelict cowshed in the Dutch Achterhoek, Overtreders W designed two freestanding guest buildings and a dining hall for retreat centre, The Place to Be — its first permanent project.

Three volumes around a sheltered courtyard, clad in herringbone-patterned repurposed timber slats, open to fields and woodland.

Every material was sourced within five kilometres: structural timber from an adjacent estate, repurposed slats from a local wood treatment plant and straw and miscanthus from a cooperative of six local farmers.

The result proves that regional circular construction can be refined, precise and cost-competitive with conventional building.