Tower-block apartments with façade gardens

The Hamerkwartier is a former industrial estate in Amsterdam North. During the next 10 years it will be gradually transformed into an area in which many people will both live and work. The planned average building height is approximately 20 metres. Narrow, high-rise is seen as the solution that will reconcile urban densification and the preservation of “open”, urban views. The high-rise skyline of the Hamerkwartier will be recognisable from a distance. Together with Amsterdam’s urban development department, we wanted to establish and reproduce the specific characteristics of the Hamerkwartier. The result is a tower block that lives and breathes. One that forms a vertical neighbourhood and an intrinsic part of a district that underscores the cohesion between its residents.

The four-storey plinth connects to the perimeter of the development and houses a restaurant, children’s museum, day-care centre, and other social functions. The core of the tower is asymmetrical to offer the larger apartments the best views of the IJ and Amsterdam’s city centre. Smaller apartments, with a floor area of approximately 60m², are on the lower residential floors. The number of apartments per floor decreases as you go up, until you reach the top floors, which have two luxury maisonettes. The tower boasts a three-dimensional generic structure all around, incorporating PV (solar) panels, allowing space for vegetable and facade gardens and providing each apartment with a private balcony. Thanks to the up-close position of the façade gardens, the ceiling-high windows afford truly spectacular views of Amsterdam.