Bootbewoners Van Amsterdam
Jowi Schmitz & Friso Spoelstra, May 2013
Bootbewoners van Amsterdam Bizar maar waar: het was er nog niet, een boek over de bootbewoners van Amsterdam. Een boek waarin je naar binnen kunt kijken in die huishoudens die in de grachten dobberen. Twintig portretten in tekst en beeld. Van de eerste ‘wateryuppen’ tot de oude schippersfamilie die op een dag aanmeerde en nooit meer vertrok. Van het gezin dat jarenlang rondzwierf tot het eindelijk een ligplaats kreeg, tot de man die als student een huis bouwde op een rotte bak en er nu nog steeds woont, zonder douche en wc. Jowi Schmitz woont zelf op een schip en is gefascineerd door de verscheidenheid van al die bootmensen. Samen met fotograaf Friso Spoelstra trok ze langs zeker honderd boten om de bewoners te leren kennen. Friso spendeerde soms dagen aan boord van een schip. Jowi kreeg rondleidingen en een overvloed aan verhalen, meer dan ze op kon schrijven. Dit boek is voor iedereen met een hart voor water. En ook voor iedereen die zich afvraagt wat die mensen toch in die nattigheid te zoeken hebben. ‘Een steiger verderop zien we een schip dat wil vertrekken. Een ander schip moet ruimte maken. Eerst zit iedereen nog druk te praten en dan valt de een na de ander stil. Ten slotte zitten we met z’n allen een half uur naar die twee dansende schepen te kijken. Die schepen en verder niets. Nou, dat vind ik mooi.’ – Els Erwteman
From parking lots to wetslums
The American institute of architects, Eileen Allaverdian-Orumie, Apr 2013
Blue and orange, and then some more orange. For the past seven-and-a-half years, these two colors have symbolized the two universities that I attended, the University of Toronto and Syracuse University, while studying architecture. Today, I am an intern architect in the “orange nation” of the Netherlands.
At the University of Toronto, I learned to see through the eyes of a contemporary, provocative architect. Most, if not all, undergraduate architecture programs in Canada today are not professional programs in themselves but stepping stones of rigorous training for graduate studies in architecture. I decided to venture all the way down “south” (for a Canadian) to upstate New York where I completed a Master’s degree in Architecture at Syracuse University. There, I saw provocative architecture take form, and most importantly, I learned to find potential and relevance in the ordinary, and that architecture is found outside of the way things appear.
This eventually led to my thesis: Good Things Happen in Parking Lots, where I proposed to redesign the typology of the parking lot into a flexible public space, which could transform into unexpected functions when not in use. I see potential in the banal and overly pervasive infrastructure of the parking lot. Its simple poles, flat ground, and spray paint lines can be imagined to generate a malleable public space.
Think of all the empty parking lots in cities, often near stadiums and exhibition centers that are prime real estate, but underused. By introducing new elements like audiovisual equipment or lights that can easily slide vertically on poles, screens that can span across poles, embedded tent structures, and storage bins for rolled surfaces like turf or water storage that can make ice for skating rinks, ordinary parking lots can become vibrant public spaces.
At Syracuse University, I also assisted teaching freshman history, theory, and in my final year, design. I enjoyed getting to know a large number of designs at a time while being a student myself. In critiquing others’ work, I was also able to critique my own, while feeling like I was getting a break from it. I am grateful for the opportunity to teach at Syracuse, and hope to be in a position to teach again one day.
Two years ago, through Syracuse University Study Abroad Programs, which has one of, if not the best, study abroad options in the US, I spent some time in The Netherlands. Although positions are scarce today for young architects in The Netherlands, the opportunities still remain unique.
For the past months I have been working at Waterstudio, a firm led by Koen Olthuis, that designs and builds architecture on water. What attracted me to this studio was how uniquely Dutch their design ethos was and how the firm is based on a concept and vision that is actually similar to my own. Although as a Torontonian I have never thought to design floating buildings, I was drawn to Waterstudio because I think they see water the way I see parking lots, as something underused that has an untapped potential for improving city life.
Floating architecture can not only combat rising water levels. What I find particularly fascinating is the possibilities for flexibility and planning for change. Floating architecture can be transported as functions become obsolete. The firm is working on building a floating, movable platform for a wetslum in Bangladesh. Interestingly enough, there are plans for Waterstudio to design a floating complex for Oswego, New York, near my alma matter.
Needless to say, the learning experience I have found in the Netherlands is unique and I have significantly grown a designer in the past two months. As an emerging architect, the discipline has challenged me for the past eight years and is surely continuing to do so.
The possible applications of international internship experiences open the door for many opportunities. This is the great thing about being an architect: you don’t know where it will lead you. There are so many venues to explore, like public spaces in dead infrastructures or floating buildings, but as long as you open your eyes to see great things, you can only go great places
From ‘sustainability to sustainaquality’ – The Five Lagoons Project
Marinaworld, Charlotte Niemiec, March 2013
Nestled in the Indian Ocean between Minicoy Island and the Chagos Archipelago, the Maldives comprise a chain of 26 atolls made up of islands and reefs. Tropical weather, white sand and clear water make the islands a popular holiday destination and a haven for divers but, while the surrounding ocean teems with life, home to coral reefs, eels, sharks, turtles, dolphins, manta rays and over 1,100 other species of fish, rising sea levels pose serious threat. Charlotte Niemiec reports on an ambitious community and tourism project aimed at keeping the Maldives afloat. The average ground level in the Maldives is just 1.5m and the island’s president, Mohammed Nasheed, has warned that even a ‘small rise’ in sea levels would eradicate large parts of the area. Envisioning a future for its people of “climate refugees living in tents for decades” the Maldivian Government has teamed up with Netherlands- based company Dutch Docklands International in a Joint Venture Project to build a solution to the problem in the form of man-made floating islands. The ‘5 Lagoons Project’ will provide housing, entertainment and guest complexes for visitors to the Maldives, expanding its footprint and further bolstering the area’s tourist economy. A star-shaped hotel and conference centre – the ‘Green Star’ – symbolises the Maldives route to combat climate change. Its many five- star facilities will include pools, beaches and restaurants. A ‘plug and play’ system allows for each leg of the star to be private islands. The Ocean Flower will open mid-2014, with removed for easy refurbishment and a temporary one floated in and placed in position. It is hoped the centre will play host to international conferences on sea level rise, climate change and environmental issues. It is scheduled to open in 2015. Across the water, relaxation is to be found at an 18-hole floating golf course. With panoramic ocean views, golfers can enjoy the driving range, short games practice areas, putting greens and a 9 hole par 3 Academy course. A separate area on the island provides romantic homes and townhouses in Venetian style, in a village offering boutiques, ice cream parlours, restaurants, bars and ultra- luxury palatial style villas. Movement around the island – assembled in archipelago form – is via bridges or glass tunnels in the ocean, which give guests the opportunity to enjoy the area’s sea life up close. A marina of international standard will also be built on this island. Amillarah – the Maldivian word for private island – will consist of 43 floating islands offering luxury $10 million villas for sale to the public.
Facilities will include a private beach, pool and green area, private jetty and small pavilion on a purpose-built island (the shape of which the buyer can design in advance), situated in the centre of an exclusive, large private water plot just a short swim away from the coral reefs. For those who baulk at the price tag, a separate development, the ‘Ocean Flower’ offers less expensive housing starting at $1 million. The Ocean Flower is located upmarket in the North Male atoll, 20 minutes by boat from the capital and airport, and will offer villas on three different scales. All have private pools and terraces and are fully furnished, while shared facilities include a beach, shops, restaurants, a diving centre, spa, swimming pools and easy access to the surrounding private islands. The Ocean Flower will open mid-2014, with construction beginning soon.
Finally, the White Lagoon project consists of four individual ring-shaped floating islands each with 72 water villas connected. The rings function as beach-boulevards with white sand and greenery. A marina will be built inside the rings and a variety of restaurants, bars, shops and boutiques will be available.
Dutch Docklands is the master developer of the project and it controls the design, engineering, financing, construction and sales. It has appointed Waterstudio.nl as its architectural firm. Dutch Docklands CEO, Paul van de Camp, is excited about the project, viewing it as the beginning of large- scale floating projects in the area. He believes that if the project is successful, it will have proved the ability of the Maldives to combine the preservation of vulnerable marine life while expanding land for the reinforcement of tourism and urban developments at the same time. The project is an equally important one for the company and will be used as a benchmark business model for concepts around the globe. The joint venture with the Maldivian Government, which brings the needs and demands of the nation together with the commercial aspirations of Dutch Docklands is, van de Camp says, a very solid and long- lasting basis for such a big project.
Understandably, there are significant challenges to be faced when building on water. The biggest, van de Camp explains, is logistics: “We build most of the floating structure off-site, in
a production yard outside the Maldives, and larger parts in the shipyards around the Indian Ocean and in the Netherlands To get all the floating products there at the right moment (‘just-in-time’ management) at the final location ready for assembling is a pretty tough task.”
However, building on the ocean also has distinct advantages over building on land, as Dutch Docklands’ co- founder Koen Olthuis explained last year at the UP Experience Conference in Houston, USA. In the open ocean, tsunami waves are mere ripples beneath a structure that floats; water is the perfect shock absorber to seismic waves; and concerns over sea-level rise are eliminated when your home rises with it.
The islands will be constructed using patented technologies, which include the use of very lightweight Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) components and strong concrete structures. In line with Dutch Docklands’ focus on ‘scarless developments’, the materials used are environmentally-friendly, causing hardly any impact to marine life. Paul van de Camp emphasises that any possible impact on the environment is noticed upfront, while the design is on the drawing board. Using the expertise of marine specialists, marine engineers and environmental consultants, the design is adjusted at the first sign of negative impact.
At a cost of over $1 billion and funded by private shareholders, the developments are luxury resorts, catering for the more elite visitor. But van de Camp explains that the 5 Lagoons Project aims to provide a whole range of resort and business activities from reasonably-priced to ultra-luxurious. The Green Star hotel will provide the best-priced rooms, with the floating palaces in the golf course at the top end of the market.
With headquarters in The Netherlands, Dutch Docklands has a long and varied history with water. Its home country has battled against water for centuries – 20% of the country lies below sea level and water is controlled using dikes and canals. Koen Olthuis has a vision of the future in which we do not fight water but live with it and upon it. A man inspired by out-of-the- box inventions such as the elevator, which allowed cities to build up rather than span out horizontally, Olthuis sees water as another platform on which to build. It is his belief that, as so many of the world’s cities lie close to water, we should utilise this space and not just defer to the argument that there is no more space. Paul van de Camp shares this vision of a future in which floating developments are commonplace, creating new space and saving threatened ocean nations
Ville flottante
Paris Match, Daphné Mongibeaux, March 2013
Un quartier résidentiel d’Amsterdam a été entièrement bâti sur l’eau. IJburg est composé de quatre îles artificielles qui abritent quelque 16 000 personnes. A Waterbuurt, un de ses quartiers, les habitants vivent dans des maisons flottant sur une mer intérieure. Trois cents pionniers que notre reporter a visités. Une solution pour tromper la montée des eaux dans le monde.
Dans ce port d’Amsterdam, les marins sont de jeunes parents qui ne rêvent pas de voyages et d’aventures exotiques. Ils préfèrent le calme, la nature et le confort, et peu ont le goût du large. Frank, business analyste, qui a dessiné lui-même les plans de sa villa et a beau l’avoir appelée Le Bateau, ne songe pas une seconde à cingler loin de ses racines lacustres. Alors que le soleil se couche sur l’IJmeer, la mer intérieure sur laquelle a été construit le quartier flottant baptisé Waterbuurt, les habitants voient leur vie se refléter dans les grandes baies vitrées illuminées de leurs voisins, si proches.
Comme Frank, Ineke, assise dans son canapé blanc XXL, se considère comme une pionnière de ce nouveau mode de vie. Elle se penche sur son iPad et rejette en arrière ses longs cheveux blonds. « Regardez, voici quelques photos de l’arrivée par la mer d’une maison du quartier. Pendant deux heures, tout le monde assiste à l’amarrage de l’édifice entre les deux piliers où il restera définitivement fixé. C’est toujours une petite fête et un moment émouvant pour les nouveaux propriétaires ou les locataires. »
1.Une maison est acheminée dans la ville par deux remorqueurs. Photo Roos Aldershoff Fotographie/Architectural Office Marlies Rohmer
Son mari, Roelof, sommelier, montre la page Facebook de leur quai, le Steiger C, sur laquelle il propose régulièrement le dimanche des apéros entre voisins. « Nous apprécions beaucoup de vivre sur l’eau. Nous nous sentons plus proches de la nature mais aussi les uns des autres. Le manque d’intimité caractéristique des Amstellodamois, la proximité des habitations et les règles communes que nous devons respecter participent au sentiment communautaire. »
« Ce qui fait également l’originalité de ces logements, c’est le “sous l’eau”, une grande pièce au sous-sol »
Les voisins d’Ineke, de Roelof et de leurs deux enfants, Pippi et Lola, étaient d’ailleurs heureux de les voir arriver en 2011. « C’est une habitation mitoyenne, elle était penchée depuis le départ de nos prédécesseurs ! Comme sur un bateau, il a fallu répartir les poids. Pour nous qui venions d’un appartement du centre-ville, nous avons dû aussi nous habituer à ce que la maison s’incline légèrement sous grand vent. Depuis que le quartier existe, une seule famille est partie à cause du mal de mer. J’avoue que les enfants et moi dormons bien mieux sur l’eau, ou plutôt sous l’eau, dans les chambres au sous-sol ! Enfin, l’environnement est tellement silencieux et les maisons si peu insonorisées que nous essayons de faire le moins de bruit possible pour respecter cette tranquillité si appréciable », raconte Ineke en servant du café au lait dans de grands verres.
Parmi les 90 maisons flottantes de Waterbuurt, 55 ont été dessinées par l’architecte néerlandaise Marlies Rohmer. Son idée : ouvrir au maximum les habitations sur l’extérieur. Les grandes baies vitrées, la terrasse à l’étage et le ponton – transformable en radeau à moteur – sont autant d’invitations à prendre l’air et voir la mer pour les chanceux qui vivent en périphérie du quartier. « Ce qui fait également l’originalité de ces logements, c’est le “sous l’eau”, une grande pièce au sous-sol. Construite en béton et située à environ 1,50 mètre en dessous de la surface, elle permet à la structure de flotter tout en gardant l’équilibre. Il a fallu aussi travailler avec la municipalité sur l’arrivée de l’eau, du gaz et de l’électricité. Ce fut un long chantier, mais nous y sommes parvenus », indique Marlies Rohmer qui a longtemps vécu sur un tjalk, une péniche hollandaise.
2. Le pont se lève pour laisser passer les nouvelles maisons. Photo Marcel Van Der Burg/Primabeeld/Architectural Office Marlies Rohmer
A priori, rien n’est à craindre au niveau de l’isolation, « du moins pendant trente à cinquante ans », précise tout de même l’architecte à propos de la durée de vie d’une telle bâtisse. Cependant, certains habitants, inquiets d’éventuelles fuites, auraient installé des détecteurs d’humidité. Construites avec du béton, de l’aggloméré et du PVC, ces « floating houses » très légères sont montées au chantier naval d’Urk, à environ 70 kilomètres d’Amsterdam, avant d’accomplir leur grand voyage, tractées par deux remorqueurs, le long du lac d’IJssel puis de l’IJmeer.
« Notre pays a gagné un quart de son territoire sur la mer »
Mais, depuis le début de la crise, les nouvelles venues se font plus rares dans le quartier. Plus de 70 maisons sont pourtant attendues ; d’autres voient leur chantier d’aménagement intérieur se prolonger depuis des mois et restent comme des carcasses vides posées sur l’eau. Le prix de ces maisons n’est pourtant pas beaucoup plus cher que dans les autres quartiers de la capitale. Ineke et Roelof ont payé 265 000 euros pour leur logement de 110 mètres carrés, et, comme tous les Néerlandais, ils louent la « terre » sur laquelle ils habitent, pour cinquante ans, au prix de 85 000 euros. « Contrairement aux autres Amstellodamois, nous avons un très gros avantage : nous n’aurons jamais à payer pour l’entretien et le remplacement des pilotis », se réjouit Roelof.
Le sol hollandais a, en effet, la particularité d’être une éponge : tous les bâtiments de la ville d’Amsterdam, dont les plus vieux datent du XIVe siècle, sont posés sur des pieux d’environ 20 mètres de longueur qu’il faut changer un par un. Un détail coûteux mais fascinant pour Frits Palmboom, l’urbaniste qui a supervisé le projet d’IJburg : « Notre pays a gagné un quart de son territoire sur la mer. » C’est lui qui, en 1998, a proposé à la municipalité d’Amsterdam d’agrandir la capitale en construisant un archipel. « Nous aurions pu réaliser un nouveau polder en faisant reculer la mer derrière une énième digue, mais je préférais que la ville s’invite dans la mer, qu’elle cesse d’être l’ennemi des Hollandais – traumatisés par de multiples inondations – pour qu’elle devienne enfin notre amie. »
3. L’été, on se baigne devant la maison. Photo Marcel Van Der Burg/Primabeeld/Architectural Office Marlies Rohmer
Ce projet, considéré au départ par les écologistes comme une menace pour l’environnement, fait aujourd’hui l’unanimité. Des réserves ont été créées pour compenser le déversement de millions de mètres cubes de sable composant les quatre îles, et on constaterait une plus grande biodiversité à IJburg et sur le littoral depuis quelques années. Il suffit d’ailleurs de se pencher au-dessus de l’eau, très claire et peu profonde (2 à 3 mètres), pour apercevoir carpes et sandres qui font le bonheur des pêcheurs et de leurs enfants. Et quand les beaux jours arrivent, les familles se jettent joyeusement à l’eau de leur ponton, pendant que le poisson grille sur le barbecue et que les mouettes tournoient dans le ciel.
La mer peut donc bien monter pour les habitants de Waterbuurt, ils seront au sec à bord de leur maison flottante. Leurs voisins, en revanche, regardent avec de plus en plus d’inquiétude l’Afsluitdijk, la grande digue qui ferme la mer intérieure et protège trois régions hollandaises, dont la capitale. Alors que d’énièmes travaux de rehaussement sont envisagés, de nouveaux quartiers flottants émergent aux Pays-Bas, où la mer se fait de plus en plus d’amis.
A visionary where the art of construction and water come together
Water enjoyment, Koen Olthuis, March 2013
Rising sea levels resulting from climate change present many nations with serious problems, with disastrous floods posing an increasing threat.
Where will people go when there is no land left?
When your country is threatened by rising seas and land is literally eaten away by the sea you have two options. Either you will move towards higher land or you change perceptions and
look at all the space on water as an opportunity to build upon and start utilising it. This sounds unrealistic but the Republic of Maldives is already planning for this geographic change. This nation exists of 1200 islands spread out over 700 kilometres in the Indian Ocean. With the highest grounds not more than 1.60 meters above water this country is the first to suffer from rising sea levels. Even a relatively small water rise of 30 cm in 60 years, it will mean a big change for the Maldivians. There are voices within the government who believe that buying new land on the continents would be the best way forward. This would however mean the loss of local cultural roots and identity.We believe that there is another option. Making floating land.
Large floating landscapes which would look the same as a normal land. In a way not so different from landfill, but more sustainable. These new islands would have beaches, houses,
trees and more green. We think that this is not a process over a few years but of a period of few decades where our floating donor land would be slowly over taken by vegetation and fauna
of the existing sinking islands. To kick-start this process Dutch Docklands is developing the first large scale projects like the floating private islands Amillarah and the floating golf course of 500,000 m2. These projects show the feasibility as well as the possibilities of a future with rising seas.
You see the interface between architecture and water not as the point where two separate entities simply come together, but where they connect and shape each other What is the vision behind this idea?
For a long time we have thought that living on land or living on water are two separate worlds. The border was clear and even rules and regulations change by crossing the waterline. Today
we see that water is a new available space to expand our cities and solve several problems caused by climate change and urbanisation. No longer is there a collision of two worlds but an
integration of maritime and land based functions. We believe in hybrid solutions where the boundary between land and water is blurred. This means that if you are driving your car from the mainland towards floating islands you will not see or notice any difference. The only thing different is the foundation under the surface is made of another technology.
Next to the enlargement of building space there is another opportunity when we start using water for city expansion. Water provides flexibility. Theoretically, functions on water are
no longer doomed to stay on a fixed location during their total technical lifespan. These floating developments can easily be moved because of the simple mooring system. This means that
we can move functions throughout the city when needed. No longer we have to demolish buildings when they are out of use but we can re-use or resell them to other locations. Exactly
the same as happens with second hand cars. By this we create a city that provides enough flexibility to react instantly to the changing need of our dynamic community. Often we see that
buildings or functions which we thought were perfect ten years ago are no longer fulfilling our needs today. I do not believe in totally floating cities but in hybrid ones that use water territory for an extra place to expand and to create flexibility that fits our constantly changing demands. Your projects “Cruise Terminals” and “Het Nieuwe Water” in the Netherlands and with other projects in Dubai, you are entering “new territory” in every sense. What are the features of these new “architecture / water interfaces”? The new territories we enter provide us with new challenges. But it is not the technology that is holding back the use of water but our perception. In order to let water be the essential part of the metamorphosis to the cities of tomorrow we should show authorities and developers the opportunities that water can provide. Water provides next to the flexibility I just mentioned also some sustainability and ecological advantages. Floating solar energy fields which spread out like large blankets over the water, water-cooled floating buildings and green floating habitats to composite the lack of open green territory for little animals on land in growing metropolis.
Your innovative designs of floating structures pave the way to a future where whole cities can exist and grow on top of the water. Will this approach result in protection against flooding
and increase responsible use of dwindling water supplies?
Our designs are part of a new approach against urban flooding. The oast has taught us that defensive solutions like higher levies and canalization of rivers are not sufficient any more. We think they must be in close combination with more offensive concepts that live with nature and the water. Floating and amphibious solutions are not threatened by floods and can provide safe heavens during times of disaster for many inhabitants of the old land based functions. It is not only land or only water developments but the cooperation of both that will lead to safer waterfront cities in the future.
City Apps by waterstudio.nl – sanitation solutions in slums for the poorest of the poor
As a pioneer of “floating architecture”, you develop solutions for sanitation facilities in slums. Under the project name “City Apps”, the aim is to create desperately needed solutions for the poorest of the poor. What has been your contribution to this altruistic project idea and how far along is the implementation?
In 2011 I started research together with UNESCO-IHE in
Delft to see if water based functions could help slums located at the waterfront in growing development cities to upgrade their prosperity.
Slums in coastal regions – such as the Korail slum in Bangladesh – are being upgraded with floating sanitation components. How does that work?
The idea is that the lack of space and the resistance to invest in these slums because of the uncertainty of eviction disturbs any possible upgrade of conditions. By using space on water we
could introduce so called city apps to these slums. City apps are floating products that provide the most essential functions like floating sanitation, floating shelter and floating energy
productions and communication. These functions are built in containers in Europe and shipped over to these slums. In the slums we build the floating foundation and place the containers
on top. In case of any eviction or change in needs these city apps can be re-used or resold to other locations. These city apps hold their value and should be part of an investment
program to upgrade these slums towards the normal local city standards. These investments will be done by European influential brands which are dominant in their field of expertise
and want to use their expertise to make a difference. Again it should not be a matter of donating but investing in a small scaled business case to create commitment and interaction
with local users and local micro businesses.
After research and a fieldtrip we have chosen Korail a wet slum in Dhaka Bangladesh to be the first location where we want to upgrade prosperity.
Your award-winning idea therefore requires a team of different companies for the development, the components, installation work and project management. What local and external partners have you already secured for this project?
What contribution has been made, for example, by Grohe AG, a leading international company for sanitation components? One of the functions is a floating washroom and toilets together
with a filter system for the black water. GROHE is a typical market leader which has gathered innovations and products for the western high end market. This knowledge is very vital for
our sanitation app. GROHE will provide both products and knowledge for the implementation of the first city app in Korail.
City Apps fight the rising seas
Discovery Channel Magazine, 2013
City Apps fight the rising seas
As sea levels rise and populations expand in poorer waterside communities, a series of floating structures that provide spaces for food and energy production, shelter and
sanitation may help improve the lives of people living in wet slums.
Known as City Apps, Koen Olthius and his team from the Netherlandsbased Waterstudio who designed it, recently won the prestigious Architecture and Sea Level Rise Award
2012 from the Jacques Rougerie Foundation, for these flexible and adaptable structures (pictured). The technology, which includes floating PV cell farms, vegetable gardens and
other useful structures, was originally designed for wealthy waterside dwellers. It will now be used for communities in need, with the prize money from the award going towards
implementing the first City App in the Korail Wet Slum in Dhaka, Bangladesh.