Many cities are developing and implementing plans for urban restructuring and densification. The Municipality of Rotterdam has explored a number of strategies with the aim of creating a more attractive, lively city centre through... more
Many cities are developing and implementing plans for urban restructuring and densification. The Municipality of Rotterdam has explored a number of strategies with the aim of creating a more attractive, lively city centre through densification and greenification. This study has researched what the actual potential for densification is and which impact on urban environmental quality and sustainability can be expected. With geodata and urban modelling, an evidence base was created that charted the effects of the proposed plans. This paper discussed how this was done and how it supported that particular stage of the process. It is expected that such evidence bases can significantly contribute to cocreation. By clarifying the societal and business value cases for different stakeholders inherent to plans, investments, and by exploring alternatives, a common operational picture is created that reduces complexity, speeds up the process, and enhances quality of outcomes. Edition: 1thPublisher: Mediacenter RotterdamEditor: Nico Tillie
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To many citizens, the port and city of Rotterdam are happily married. Indeed, as the port of Rotterdam became the largest of Europe and even the World, planners and policy makers have done a lot to keep up appearances. Ten years ago,... more
To many citizens, the port and city of Rotterdam are happily married. Indeed, as the port of Rotterdam became the largest of Europe and even the World, planners and policy makers have done a lot to keep up appearances. Ten years ago, their optimism reached a point of euphoria – one that could only lead to disappointment. A huge port expansion plan in the North Sea was expected to provide the city with ample opportunities to develop a new urban environment inside old port areas inside Rotterdam’s highway rim. This new area was called CityPorts – 1,600 hectares of land and water that would transform from a large scale port into an new urban environment. Anno 2012, it has become clear that the transformation plans for CityPorts would never be realized. The city and port of Rotterdam found themselves back to back, and the love for each other seemed to have faded. However, rather than getting frustrated about the situation, those involved worked hard to reach a new development perspectiv...
This article discusses how CIAM (Congrès Internationaux d’Architecture Moderne) influenced Dutch housing and urban planning. It starts by looking at programs and policies of the 1920s and 1930s Dutch housing design, and the way in which... more
This article discusses how CIAM (Congrès Internationaux d’Architecture Moderne) influenced Dutch housing and urban planning. It starts by looking at programs and policies of the 1920s and 1930s Dutch housing design, and the way in which the new ideas of CIAM were there incorporated. In this history, the design of the AUP (Algemeen Uitbreidingsplan Amsterdam, or the General Extension Plan) is crucial, marking the transition into a new spatial model for large scale housing areas. CIAM thinking and its successor, TEAM X, strongly influenced the idea of the social-cultural city before and directly after WWII. This becomes evident in the urban extensions of Amsterdam and Rotterdam. This practice influenced urban planning and housing design and culminated during the 1970s in the design of the Bijlmermeer. Though legendary and still detectable in the urban developments of Amsterdam and Rotterdam, CIAM thinking came forward as both visionary and problematic. This article will trace the CIAM...
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Work on a liveable low carbon city has often been approached in a technocratic way, not linking to other disciplines and urban practices at a large scale. This paper explores a stakeholder based urban agenda for a more liveable low carbon... more
Work on a liveable low carbon city has often been approached in a technocratic way, not linking to other disciplines and urban practices at a large scale. This paper explores a stakeholder based urban agenda for a more liveable low carbon city by densifying and greening with the case study of Rotterdam inner city. Rotterdam presents a unique European case with a modernistic inner city. Like many North American cities, the inner city for a long time mainly served as a business or shopping district with few inhabitants and few synergetic links between flows, urban functions, and areas. In line with other cities, Rotterdam aims to reduce carbon emissions and provide a high quality of life. To address this, the hypothesis 'densifying and greening leads to a more sustainable inner city', was tested and applied with stakeholders using transition management combined with urban data, modelling, and design. With sustainability indicators, geographic information system (GIS) mapping, and urban models, a baseline study was completed and expected outcomes were described and, where possible, validated in reality. The outcomes confirmed the stated hypothesis and showed that linking design, GIS mapping, and city data to transition management proved successful.