Amsterdam is under pressure. It’s busy, and locals are looking for space where their children can play outside, where they can park their cars, where there is still plenty of greenery and where good living is still affordable.
That is why a lot of people head towards the north and east city extensions. From here, you can quickly cycle to everything that makes Amsterdam such a great city.
Zeeburgereiland (Zeeburger island) is a completely new area in Amsterdam. It’s developing into a bustling city district, with various newly-built neighbourhoods.
Zeeburgereiland is completely surrounded by water and is easily accessible by highway, as well as public transport. This guarantees a fast connection to the north and the south.
From John Blankensteinstraat (John Blankenstein street), neighbourhood ‘KOMST’ (‘arrival‘) will be realised. Here, 19 homes will be designed by no less than 6 architects.
All buildings will be different and their unique facades will create a playful and lively street. But perhaps what makes this neighbourhood even more unique are the old building materials that are used in the construction.
It is fascinating to see how these architects have come to their very own creations. Thanks to this original way of working, KOMST fits in nicely with the adjacent projects where individual private clients have individually designed their homes.
The nineteen homes together form a balanced mix of colours, shapes and materials. The architects had a lot of freedom to shape their own views on what makes living spaces attractive to them.
Of course, you want some coherence with all that freedom. That is why Urban Echoes acted as a coordinating office to coordinate ideas. This way, each individual agency could get the best out of itself.
Diversity in material, depth in the facade, construction height and beech size is of great importance in the urban design of this block.
Urban Echoes guided the various designs (if necessary) based on materialising and coordinating details so that there would remain sufficient variation in the block.
For example, two of the houses were executed on their advice in FRONT® Blackpepper WasteBasedBricks, perfectly suiting the sustainable theme of BPD to re-use materials for block 3B.
BPD aims to obtain all their materials in a circular manner in the future. Amsterdam is at the forefront of small-scale developments in which reuse plays a prominent role. KOMST is a project where the first leap is made to a more project-based approach.
UPDATE 2020
Amsterdam is at the forefront of small-scale developments in which reuse plays a prominent role.
A lively mix of black, anthracite and brown make the Blackpepper a solid choice.
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