TLANTI issue 19.2 april 2008
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editorial cristina ampatzidou
I would like to start this note realising that many things went wrong with our last issue. We found out that almost one third of the issues were printed with a lot of white pages. Although a handy notebook, they were supposed to contain some really interesting articles. You have the apologies of our publisher and of the editorial team. We hope that we will not have to face the same problems in the future. Secondly, a rectification. In the last issue Job Oosterhuis wrote a report for the study trip to Iran in the summer of 2007. The trip was not organised by Polis, as mentioned in his article, as TU Delft and Polis officially withdrew themselves from the organisation and responsibility for the trip a month before departure. The trip was then organised by Hoda Khazen by her own initiative, with no support from the faculty and a smaller group of people. In this issue, our writers are commenting on the active role of the recipients of urban interventions and explore the relation between planning and experiencing the city. What is becoming the relationship of urban planning and design with the people whom the design primarily concerns? According to Hein de Haan, collective projects initiated by the inhabitants themselves are possible and lead to environments of higher quality and social interaction. Camila Pinzon Cortes is explaining how actions that stimulate and educate the users of the city can be part of a planning policy, with very successful results, as shown in the example of Bogotá and Ekim Tan is calling for a new design interface which allows architects and users to create a much more complex and diverse living environment. Reflecting on their graduation project, Katerina Chrysanthopoulou and me, we are proposing that there is a new task for the designer, that of bringing together their expertise with the local knowledge, while Sander Scholte tries to map Madrid metro stations in an alternative and colorful way. Atlantis is devoting the coming issue to the Polis board, and invites articles commenting on the –isms of Urbanism. Whether writing about the distance an –ism is creating or commenting on one of the three –isms they have proposed, escapism, traditionalism and utopism, your contribution will be welcomed.
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editorial content from the board polis projects for collective clients the experience of civic culture in Bogota caracas photoreport almere letters no1 - the trojan horse do-it-yourself prosperity rainbow stedelijke wernieuwing meeren vaart buurt in amsterdam west een succes? call for submissions polis partners subscribe to polis
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from the board edoardo felici
Dear Polis members and Atlantis readers, As in every organization, there comes a time to reflect on what has been done in the past and how to react on what will come in the future. Especially in the field of university education, methods, techniques and goals are in constant development and change. Polis is always playing an active role in this and therefore our organization is also subject to these movements. Besides offering our members and students very down-to-earth activities like visiting urbanism bureaus, attending interesting lectures, working as a portal for internships and organizing study trips, we also play an important part on a less tangible, but very important level. Polis has the opportunity to strengthen the networks around us and bring together urbanism students of all ages and practice members from around the country, and seeing the recent rise in foreign students at our faculty, also far beyond Dutch borders. Polis is also the voice of students towards the faculty, giving them an opportunity to make their say and actively participate in the educational debate. Unfortunately these social and educational aspects seem to have lost credit in recent years, turning Polis into a top-down organization realizing those practical activities but often neglecting the higher goal this organization was founded for. The significance of the name ‘Polis, platform for urbanism’ implies contributions from all, staff, students, members and bureaus alike. The invitation
to use this platform has been written and said often, but to what extent is Polis really being used as a voice of opinion, a promotor for workshops and publications and a network for social and professional contacts? The position this year’s board has been asked to take is a difficult one, as none of us are in very close contact to the urbanism education due to various circumstances. Nonetheless, we do have a vision for Polis spanning longer than our term as a board, as the situation clearly requires this. In this long-term vision we are putting those aspects on the forefront which in our eyes Polis was meant to fulfill, besides the activities we usually organize and you participate in. In pratical terms this means we are working on changes in our policy and organizational structure to bring about this change of mentality. Issues of board continuity, invisibility in our faculty and student disinterest will eventually lead to problems we do not want Polis to face. So do not hesitate to voice your thoughts, on any level. You can keep track of our latest developments and proposals through the Atlantis and our website. We will not hesitate to play our part in proposing new ideas and approaches to our work as a board to strengthen the future of Polis. Remember, Polis is here to be used by YOU.
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POLIS - platform FOR URBANISM
History
Polis was founded in October 1989 by Urbanism teachers and students of the department of Urbanism in the Faculty of Architecture, in Delft University of Technology. The initiative was created to preserve and reinforce the quality of the education, under pressure from modifications. Furthermore, Polis has the goal to initiate better contact between education, research and practice.
Urbanism
Urbanism is a dynamic subject. The content of the profession is forever subject to change and a topic of discussion. This is headed by the changes in society. As an urbanist in the daily practice and in research it is important to be aware of these changes to take a stand. The urbanist can then give a vision on the [design] tasks in our society.
Podium
Polis, Podium for Urbanism, wants to give urbanists in the practice and in fields of reasearch a podium where the determination of their role is possible. The goal of Polis is seduce urbanists to profit from this podium. This is done through the organisation of various activities as excursions, debates, lectures, symposia and competitions. Our periodical magazine Atlantis plays an important role in this, as it is a platoform for discussion and it gives a good overview of all the Polis activities.
Consultation
Polis is the link between scientific research and
practice. Polis keeps in touch with different groups within urbanism. Polis leads conversations on different levels about the quality of education. The relevance for research and education in this is a primal criterium. To increase the range inside and outside of the Faculty, Polis keeps connections to related organisations.
Polis Fund
The Polis Fund was created by Polis, Podium for Urbanism to promote and finance individual and small scale activities that come forth from the daily practice. Please contact Polis for funding requests.
The Polis board of 2007-2008 Edoardo Felici [president] Sander Scholte [vice-president] Brenda Glapootjes [vice-president] Job Oosterhuis [secretary] Haani Washian [treasurer] Practice members: Bart Stoffels Christian Messing Main editor Atlantis: Cristina Ampatzidou Education committee: Redmar van Leeuwen Graphicl committee: Thomas de Bos
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PROJECTS FOR COLLECTIVE CLIENTS - do it yourself project development - development by subscription, how to organize an interesting functional mix in a mono-functional urban context Hein de Haan
1 . INTRODUCTION The Dutch housing market moves from supplyorientated to client-orientated. The consumer gets more power, he/she becomes more critical and has more demands on the quality of his/her home and neighborhood. People want more influence on the design of their house and on the program and form of what happens directly around their home (urban space, working and facilities). Local authorities, housing corporations, developers and groups of dwellers work on different models that give more power to the clients. This power is maximal in the case that the dwellers and users start to develop their own collective building with their own house and working space inside. Our actual Dutch system to develop a new housing area looks a lot like the 19th century approach. The local government provides the building sites, the infrastructure and the facilities. The market (the developers) built the houses on stock that are sold like pieces of bread. This leads to a disastrous one-dimensional program: just housing and the necessary schools, shops and facilities. When we are lucky someone remembers in time to built a children’s day care center, when we are not it will be fitted in some empty office space afterwards. The result is poor programmatic urban quality.
On city level (the ‘struktuurplan’) we read the inspiring ambition to built an interesting mix of housing, working and facilities, at the end of the development pipeline we see just houses with the prescribed facilities as a result. It is just the CIAM all over again! Strangely enough only a few urban designers see this as a crisis. As everyone is busy with the cosmetics (Almere: ‘our architectonical ambitions are on European level’), is there anyone left who cares about the program? Development by subscription is a relatively simple way to produce a more complex program and thus raise the urban programmatic quality that is wanted. The development risk is low because there will be built tailor made houses, working spaces and facilities for a known and financed demand: ‘Building exactly what society asks for’.
2 . TYPOLOGY OF DEVELOPMENT These types of development are arranged following an increasing influence for the clients on the program and design of their houses, working space and facilities: TRADITIONAL DEVELOPMENT Client influence on: Typology, layout and refurbishment of the house
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- none Working space, facilities, parking - none Urban plan - none Other parameters: Program decisions (conservative, market research/ analysis) - not sustainable Program (100% housing with common facilities) - one dimensional Development by subscription - impossible Design cosmetics + reasonable/good Affordable + reasonable CLIENT ORIENTATED DEVELOPMENT Client influence on: Typology, layout and refurbishment of the house + big Working space, facilities, parking - none Urban plan - none Other parameters: Program decisions (client orientated) + more sustainable Program (housing with other activities possible) + less one dimensional Development by subscription + possible Design cosmetics + reasonable/good Affordable + reasonable COMMON CLIENTSHIP (DEVELOPER WORKS TOGETHER WITH CLIENT) Client influence on: Typology, layout and refurbishment of the house + big Working space, facilities, parking + possible Urban plan
+ limited Other parameters: Prog ram decisions (client is par tner in development) + sustainable Program (housing with other activities possible) + more possible Development by subscription + possible Design cosmetics + reasonable/good Affordable + reasonable/good DESIGN FROM THE CATALOGUE (VARYING ON EXISTING DESIGN) Client influence on: Typology, layout and refurbishment of the house + big Working space, facilities, parking - none Urban plan - none Other parameters: Prog ram decisions (client is par tner in development) + more possible Program (house combined with other activities possible) + more possible Development by subscription (outside the own site) - impossible Design cosmetics + bad/reasonable Affordable + reasonable/expensive INDIVIDUAL CLIENTSHIP - IC (DO IT YOURSELF DEVELOPMENT ON YOUR OWN SITE) Client influence on: Typology, layout and refurbishment of the house + very big Working space, facilities, parking
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COLLECTIVE CLIENTSHIP - CC (DO IT OURSELVES DEVELOPMENT ON A COMMON SITE) Client influence on: Typology, layout and refurbishment of the house + big Working space, facilities, parking + big Urban plan + possible in early stage Other parameters: Program decisions (clients have initiative in development) + much possible Program (very mixed, decided by clients) + much possible, sustainable Development by subscription (on project level) + good Design cosmetics + reasonable/good Affordable (even public funding is possible) + good
a critical number of units quite affordable housing. This critical mass (starts at 40-50 houses) and a high density make it possible to develop common facilities like a theater, a guesthouse and a children’s day care center. Together with the workspace they produce a lively program (see Vrijburcht). The economy of the common concrete skeleton limits the variety in typology at CC, But the same can be said about the urban rules that control the individual sites. The diagram above shows clearly that the dream of IC (individual clientship) on an individual site is strictly limited to the freedom between the bearing walls. Even common clientship shows better results. Local authorities have high expectations of IC, the clients on individual lots (in many cases it is the only type of client centered development they know). This is not always justified: - the market facilitates this group already strong (Holland outside Randstad) - the target group is limited because you need a lot of money - on a bigger scale (Almere) IC produces American suburbs of 30 years ago - the use of space, materials and energy makes this solution totally outdated - the low density is not encouraging facilities or public transport - the uneconomical individual production generates high building costs - the individual site is not suitable as a basic building unit for a city (it produces mainly housing and few other activities) So the plus – the funny cosmetic variety - brings also some negative effects.
Conclusion is that CC has the best potential to combine maximum influence with reasonable affordability. Developing on cost-price level or even with public funding produces above
Of course this is no reason to stop with IC altogether. In certain areas at the edge of the city it will be great to plan a zone with maximum freedom to built, without cosmetic supervision (the Dutch
- none Urban plan - none Other parameters: Program decisions (client has initiative in development) + more possible Program (house combined with other activities possible) + possible, mostly housing Development by subscription (on site level) - impossible Design cosmetics + interesting variety Affordable? (not below € 400.000, -) - extremely expensive
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Other groups (like the elderly) can design their housing and caring situation tailor made. In this way a very social and sustainable neighborhood will grow easily.
Individual clients on their lots on Steigereiland IJburg Amsterdam
‘Welstand’) and without the many rules that trim the Dutch people into standard housing solutions. This zone could be combined with a lot of water and green areas. It takes some money, but the results will be most interesting. During the same period it will be wise to develop blocks with CC in the areas that are more centrally orientated in the city. These blocks will have facilities (for instance children’s day care) and many working spaces developed by subscription. Because social housing can be part of these initiatives, it is possible for people with a low income to join the development. Apart from deciding on the layout (with the architect) and choosing the kitchen, the bathroom and the finish (with the builder) of their own house the participants may start to develop the facilities of their choice on project level: - for instance children’s day care, restaurant, fitness - common assembly room for theater, movies, music, parties and meetings - financial constructions - common parking garage with car-sharing - energy saving and environmental projects Single parent families can easily organize their daily life because of the existing network.
3. THE DIFFERENT SHAREHOLDERS AND DEFINITIONS AT CC 1. THE PARTICIPANTS The group of participants grows slowly from the group that started the project: the initiative group. The participants organize themselves in a foundation, union or cooperative. They elect a board that can make the necessary contracts. The board is often supported by professional advisors. In the case that the participants finance the project themselves (Vrijburcht) there can be chosen to work with different contracts that get more and more serious during the process of preparation of the project. First an entrance fee, later follow a payment to finance the preparation activities (architect, advisors, part of ground price, etc.) and a fixed sum that goes with the ‘option-to-buy-contract’. The ‘option-to-buy-contract’ gives the participant the right to develop with the architect his or her own house and workspace These three payments form together about 8% of the all in price for the house and are considered as a payment in advance that enables the group to finance their development independent from external banks or housing corporations. This 8% will cover all costs until the actual building starts. Sometimes a bank with sympathy for this type of cooperative development may help the
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individual participant to finance this 8% (Rabobank Amsterdam). At the start of the building process the usual ‘buy-and-built-contract’ will be signed with the building contractor (Vrijburcht, in other cases can this be done with the supporting housing corporation). The participants form workgroups to mobilize more people and to take away tasks from the board. These workgroups can deal with: • finance • welcome and introduction new participants • website, news and communication • ICT, installations and high tech in the new building • parties and openings • committees for the different facilities: theater (program), guesthouse, garden, harbor, etc.). There can be too much workgroups (keeping each other endlessly busy), but also too few: leaning back as consumers while the board does all the work. The central idea of all forms of Collective Client Unions is that the influence of the participants – also in the case of social housing – on the project and the own house or working space is maximal. 2. THE CITY On two different levels there is contact between the participants and the city. On the first level the city will be the partner that represents the urban plan and program and the provider of the building site. The positive result of the talks about the site will be put down in a declaration of intention. To make a CC plan successful the urban plan needs to be flexible enough to adapt to the complex program with working space and facilities that come with this type of development. Also the building envelop will be quite different from the
common housing developments around, there is often the wish to built a big assembly space (theater, meeting room). The city will select the groups that want to built their CC project. The big amount of groups and the few locations that are available frustrates much hope and energy (Houthavens Amsterdam). The second serious barrier is the bureaucracy that will not easily leave the known development paths. Because of this more than half of the selected groups will fail later on (Steigereiland IJburg Amsterdam). On the second level the city will represent the laws and regulations around building. The design should meet: - the rules of the urban plan, the building rules (Bouwbesluit) including fire protection and safety to get a building license - the rules of the companies that deliver energy, communications and water 3. THE ARCHITECT The architect should be available and equipped to talk with all participants. The experience learns that three times 1,5 hour should be adequate. To limit the amount of hours it can be wise to ask the people who need much more attention to pay for the extra time. It is efficient to organize the talks following the typology of the design. Smart solutions can be copied by the neighbors, some costly adaptations can be explained and avoided in one session with the group. The talks about the program and the layout of project, house or workspace should preferably be held directly with the designer of the project. Sometimes there will be an advisor in between, but this limits the range and the quality of good solutions. An advisor will rejects all proposal outside the lines of the defined playing field, while the designer will feel free to cross these lines when really needed.
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To avoid double administration and mistakes it is wise that the talks with the architect are limited to the program and the layout of project, house or workspace. Later in contact with the builders can be decided on the refurbishment of the house (individual finish, kitchen, bathroom, tiles, colors, etc.) Lack of experience with CC of the architect can easily be compensated by interest and ambition. Experience with design and building of housing combined with more complex programs and knowledge on costs and sustainability are essential. 4. THE BACKUP PARTNER Because the elected board of the participants cannot take the selling risk of a housing project the board invites a backup partner to sign a backup contract. In most cases this will be a housing corporation that has sympathy towards CC and that considers CC as an interesting development to get some experience in this field. An inspection of the prices and qualities of the houses in the project by the corporation is essential before they step in. The backup contract means that the partner takes over the houses that could not be sold to rent them out or to sell them on the market. For these houses the partner behaves like an individual participant. The ‘late buyers’ in the project take over all obligations that the backup partner has fulfilled before, like paying the interest during building time. The cooperation with the backup partner can be useful in more activities of the project: - the project-leader and the overseer at the building site are rented in from the staff of the backup partner - the backup partner is owner of and finances some of the facilities - the backup partner supports the group in an earlier vulnerable stage with advise, financing and contracts with the city: protected CC (Almere) - if there is social housing in the project (Vrijburcht,
Almere) there will be automatically an earlier and heavier role for the backup partner 5. THE ADVISORS The advisor for building construction who makes the calculations on strength, stiffness and stability works for every substantial building that needs a building license. Mostly his worked is linked to that of the architect, so there will not be much direct contact with the participants. The installation advisor sometimes has a direct contact with the participants to select sustainable and energy-saving installations and deciding on the quality of the bathroom equipment (Vrijburcht). He also advises on sun- and wind-energy, on selfsupporting energy solutions and on ways to store heat and cold in the ground or in the water. Very important at a CC project is the role of the cost calculator. He will define in an early stage the building price and the additional costs. To offer the participants adequate financial security it is necessary to keep the estimated housing prices on the same level for 4 years, from the start of the process until the building contract is signed (BO1, Vrijburcht). In the case of a building team where the contractor is member of the team that prepares the project, the cost calculator will control the price level as a referee. 6. THE BUILDING CONTRACTOR As stated above the builder can be member of the building team (WOONKUNSTWERK Almere). A positive effect is that there can be contact in an early stage on matters of cost and organizing the building process. A minor point can be that the contract is difficult to end in the case that there comes no agreement on the price. To dissolve this problem the builder will be asked to sign a declaration that states the he steps out in the case this agreement will not be reached and that he accept that the client looks for another building contractor.
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In other cases (BO1, Vrijburcht) three or more building firms are asked to calculate a price. They will be selected on matters like experience with complex building and if they can deal with many individual wishes from the clients. Usually the builder with the lowest price will get the job. The participants can choose in direct contact with the builder to decide on the refurbishment of the house (individual finish, kitchen, bathroom, tiles, colors, etc.). They pay for the fact that they want some extra’s above the standard level that is fixed in the contract. In some cases (Vrijburcht) the participants receive a fixed sum to arrange their own kitchen. The participants that decide to accept the quality as defined in the contract get their house for the originally fixed price.
Wijttenbachstraat: 80% clients known personally
This group of clients has changed the urban plan of their block to accommodate more elderly
4. INFLUENCE OF CLIENTS ON HOUSING AND URBAN PLANNING INSPIRING HISTORY 1980: A- BUILDING FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD - DAPPERBUURT AMSTERDAM
Clients in model house scale 1:1
STEP BY STEP URBAN RENEWAL IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD DAPPERBUURT (1980 - 1990) TYPOLOGY OF THE PROCESS: - organize a step by step renewal process (see scheme above) - everyone moves in one time from old to new housing (or – if wanted – to another place) - new housing can be programmed to suit the clients, because they are known beforehand - the step by step process is managed by connecting the projects (see scheme) - keep as many houses as possible in use during the process - keep as many schools, shops, facilities and market stalls in use during the process - protect the social infrastr ucture in the neighborhood
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- start with building, not with demolition to keep up the good spirit - renovate and re-use existing buildings of good quality - as few as possible empty buildings and not or badly used sites keep rent losses low - many houses in use means good political control by the neighborhood - research linked to contact with the people in the blocks that are about to be replaced - do not just ‘milk’ the information but consider the people as partners in the process - visit everyone in the block that is planned to be replaced and discus the options The experience from the period of ‘building for the neighborhood’ consists of talking with the clients (known beforehand) about the new project and their houses. It was a funny period because these people had much more influence on their homes in the social housing rented sector than the buyers on the private market.
4. INFLUENCE OF CLIENTS ON HOUSING AND URBAN PLANNING INSPIRING HISTORY 1993: B- LEGALIZING SQUATTED BUILDINGS, LEVANTKADE 10 EASTERN DOCKLANDS
The houses of Levantkade 10 can shelter three different uses: - a three room apartment for 1 or 2 persons (with one child) - a house for two independently living persons - a house with a big working space for an artist
The program to legalize squatted buildings is always more complex than it is for housing. There will be space needed for working and art production and in many cases also for a café and for cultural activities. There will be a variety on ways of living together that changes fast with the passing of time. Think of the many babies that are born nine months after their parents got a legal house. In the past there was a tendency to design for a program that followed literally the actual wishes of the clients and consisted basically on a grouporientated layout. Because of the fast changes this layout was soon utterly outdated. This problem is solved by transforming the program in a way that it consists of a pattern of three room apartments that can shelter three different uses (see above).
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By small adaptations this program can easily follow the wishes of the first generation of users. The number of doorbells, address numbers and letterboxes should correspond with the amount of independently living persons in the building, to avoid reduction on social security payments. In Holland there is a penalty on social security when sharing facilities, which is clearly a sustainable way of living! The program based upon three room apartments is also nice for the other participants: The housing corporation will not have to worry about the future of the rental houses in the market, to get a building license and possible subsidies will be relatively simple. Other examples in Amsterdam are the legalizing of Nieuwe Meer, KBW 15-17-19, Binnengasthuispanden, Koevoet, Inktfabriek, SHB-gebouw, Wilhelmina, Oceaan and in Leiden the building Bril. The positive experience from the legalizing process is working with the concept of a neutral typology that can be easily adapted to the wishes of the first generation of users, but that has also the sustainability to be suitable to other programs in the future.
4. INFLUENCE OF CLIENTS ON HOUSING AND URBAN PLANNING INSPIRING HISTORY 2005:
C- NEIGHBORHOODPLAN ROËLLSTRAAT AMSTERDAM NIEUW WEST
The ‘Algemeen Uitbreidingsplan Amsterdam’ by Cornelis van Eesteren (1934) is an urban plan that is built directly after the Second World War, mainly with social housing. At this moment in the AUP area there is a very rough urban renewal operation going on (much unlike the ‘building for the neighborhood’ in the eighties). The wishes and the interest of the people are neglected, the cultural heritage of the AUP is not relevant, the real estate portfolio of the housing corporation is the central focus of attention. To protect the heritage of the AUP and the interest of the people that live there the union ‘Pro West’ is founded. ‘Pro West’ has made several urban plans in cooperation with the people from different neighborhoods. The urban plan for the Roëllstraat has prevented the demolition of a group of low rise terrace-houses. Typical for the plan is the use of additional new buildings (to prevent demolition) instead of replacing the existing houses by new blocks. Other urban plans of Pro West together with the neighborhood are: - plan for re-using Andreas hospital - plan for Johan Jongkind straat and Lelylaan - plan for Noorderhof Zuid - support for the inhabitants of the Delflandplein area The experience with urban plans of Pro West can be used in CC situations
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5. PROJECTS CC A- HET KAMEEL - VLAARDINGEN initiative: group ‘Het Kameel’ start proces: 1980 completion: 1985 owner: wbv Vlaardingen builder: de Waal Vlaardingen architect: CASA, project architects: Hein de Haan with Harry Kerssen and Paul Carrée
24 working/living units Landstraat Vlaardingen social rent housing
This project is started by the inhabitants/users themselves in 1980 and is one of the first CC projects in the Netherlands. The autonomy of the group was very great, they started to look that late for a formal owner that the contract with the builder was almost signed. Formally workspace in subsidized housing is impossible. This is solved with an experimental status with the SEV. The project got the urban renewal price of the province of Zuid Holland.
5. PROJECTS CC B. BO1 - OOSTELIJK HAVENGEBIED AMSTERDAM
photo by Piet Rook
photo by Mick Palarczyk
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initiative: initiative group with Hein de Haan start proces: 1992 completion: 1997 owner: VVE BO1 backup partner: housing corporation Ymere builder: Teerenstra Heiloo architect: CASA, project architects: Siem Goede and Hein de Haan Program: - 72 houses - 24 working spaces, with a Chinese restaurant - common house for children and guests - parking garage - exhibition window - common workshop
5. PROJECTS CC C . PARTLY RECONSTRUCTION AND PARTLY RENOVATION GRUBBEHOEVE BIJLMERMEER AMSTERDAM
Differentiated plan for 313 apartments, 1200 m2 working space and 600 m2 facilities in this project in Amsterdam, that was originally intended to be demolished. The outer skin and the installations have been renovated. Most apartments (2nd t/m 9th floor) got a low cost renovation (with client influence). A more intensive reconstruction has been realized for: - 10th floor with atelier and roof terrace on rooftop - ground floor and first floor; these are totally reconstructed for living, working and facilities - entrances, staircases and elevators initiative: group KJEB: Buy Your Own Bijlmer strategy CC: Peter Voogt en Hein de Haan feasibility study: Hein de Haan start proces: 1998 completion: 2007 owner: VVE Koop Je Eigen Grubbehoeve and Rochdale builder: different contractors for different parts architect: CASA, project architect Koen Crabbendam The ‘Bijlmerbelievers’ (Het Parool 1999) Henno Eggenkamp and Bernadette de Wit proposed to take over by the inhabitants the apartment building Grubbehoeve that was intended to be demolished: Buy Your Own Bijlmer. The housing corporation asked Peter Voogt and Hein de Haan to find out how this should be done. Their proposal was accepted by the inhabitants, the corporation and the local district. A feasibility study followed with a positive conclusion. The design is made by CASA architects (Koen Crabbendam).
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5. PROJECTS CC D. VRIJBURCHT - STEIGEREILAND IJBURG AMSTERDAM 2006
VRIJBURCHT first floor - light grey = common house for mentally handicapped youngsters and house for the caretakers - black = theater with guest rooms (can be used as dressing rooms) - dark grey = children’s day care center - grey = tailor made housing
restaurant, children’s day care center) building contractor: BK Bouw Bussum architect: CASA, projectarchitect Hein de Haan
VRIJBURCHT ground floor - dark grey = workspace and ateliers (16x) - light grey = restaurant - grey = children’s day care center - lighter grey = tailor made housing
initiative: group of friends form an initiative group with architect Hein de Haan and start CC, selection results in 4 groups, only VRIJBURCHT survives start process: 2002 building completed: end 2006 houses, 2007 project owner: VVE VRIJBURCHT backup partner: wbv de Key (owner of common house for mentally handicapped youngsters,
Program: - 52 houses, 10 low priced - 16 working spaces - Theater - Restaurant - Common house for mentally handicapped youngsters - Children’s Day Care Center - Guestrooms - Glasshouse - Common garden - Workshop - Harbor
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5. PROJECTS CC E. WOONKUNSTWERK - CASCADEPARK OOST - ALMERE
program: - 86 atelier-houses, 32 working spaces, café, glasshouse, common assembly room, skybar initiative: Citymix, Hans Kuijpers start process: 2006 building completed: 2010 owner: housing corporation ‘de Key’ and VVE backup partner: housing corporation ‘de Key’ building contractor: Moes bv Almere architect: Citymix, project architect Hein de Haan
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6. SHORT STORYBOOK FOR CC phase
initiative
stakeholders
activity
initiative group
look for participants
city
write project vision design website founding foundation or union look for a site sign agreement with city
definition
participants
start team for the project
advisors
fit in urban plan
city
define planning and process agreement with city to start plan
program
participants
organize financing
back up partner
define program
architect
sign backup contract programmatic sketch
design
participants
detailing of the program
backup partner
making of global design
architect
cost calculation
advisors
define house prices
notary
decide on sustainability design layout house and workshops sign “option to buy� contract
preparation of building
bachup partner
decide on cost calculation
architect
decide on materials
advisors
decide on installations define building contract produce contract drawings
building
participants
sign building contract
backup partner
sign individual buy and build contracts
architect
define finishing of each house
builder
building
notary
control the building process completion start VVE (union of owners)
maintenance
VVE administration office
common facilities financial management and maintenance of the building
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The experience of Civic culture in Bogota: think big, act small camila pinzon cortes
The last Venice biennale of architecture (2006) granted the city of Bogotá, Colombia with the “Golden Lion Award for cities”. The award was given because “This city has in the last decades addressed the problems of social inclusion, education, housing and public space especially through innovations in transport.” 1 Besides the specific conditions and the situation of the city and country in general, the transformation of Bogotá has some lessons worth to know not only for cities in developing countries but in general for other contexts. Like the biennale wrote, “Bogotá is, in short, a beacon of hope for other cities, whether rich or poor.” Even if the most known transformations of the city are those implemented within the periods of the majors Mockus and Peñalosa 2, what the city is today, and the so acclaimed transformation has been a long and multiple process. This process started already in the early 90s with the organization of the finances and the governability of the city by the mayor at the time, Castro, and it continues today with the theme “positive Bogotá” from the current major. Briefly, the transformation of the city has two main faces. On one side, the physical interventions like the new public transport system, Transmilenio, the network of libraries, parks, bike routes etc. On the other, the transformation in the behaviour of inhabitants of the city and their interrelations and relations to the urban space achieved though the program of “Civic culture”. In accomplishing what
the city is today, these two types of interventions complement. In my opinion, none of them alone would have made it to produce such transformation. The idea of the “civic culture”, emblem of A. Mockus during his period as mayor, will be the central axis of this text by shortly reviewing the programmes directed to the creation of civic culture for Bogotá. These programmes, although not so much involved with physical transformations of the city, show how small actions in the public space of the city, charged with a ‘play’ background and with a pedagogical objective, can make a huge impact in the way people interact within that space, with benefits for the quality of living.
‘For mar ciudad’, Civic culture programme One of the important events facilitating the changes in Bogota was the popular election of majors declared by the new constitution in 1991. One major is elected on bases of his/her “Development Plan”. In the first period of Mockus, this development plan was called “Formar ciudad” (To form city). The term ‘formar’ in Spanish has a broader meaning, it means to educate, to instruct. Thus with this title, already the emphasis was given to the idea of education and pedagogy that would be essential in the idea of the Civic culture, central axis of the plan. The definition of civic culture stated in the Development plan was: “By civic culture we
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understand the ensemble of habits, actions and minimal shared rules that generate a sense of belonging, facilitate the urban coexistence and drive to the respect of the common patrimony and the recognition of the rights and duties of the citizens” 3 The civic culture programme had two supports. Firstly, Mockus believed that one of the problems of the city was the divorce between the law, the moral and the culture, “the three regulators of human behavior”. This divorce explained the difficulties and problems of coexistence. Secondly, this divorced could be attacked by “intensified interaction” (Mockus 2003). “The communication through intensified interaction helps to clarify the relationship between the rights and duties, and between the own right and the one of the other.” (Mockus 2001) Examples of the divorce between law, moral and culture are laws from which is culturally accepted not to respect them. This happens at many levels from the right place to cross a street, up to paying local taxes. Within this framework, the projects of the civic culture wanted to concentrate in the self regulation and the regulation between city inhabitants. Through personal interaction, this would contribute to transform behaviors and habits of people in the city. The main focus to transform habits and behaviour of Bogota’s inhabitants was through education. Mockus emphasized that “Every government action should have a pedagogical saldo 4.” 5. Besides the specific objectives of each program of the local administration, they should always contribute to the civic culture by teaching something to the inhabitants.
Some examples of actions Several programs were developed in order to create intensified interaction and inter-regulation, to educate the city-inhabitants and in that way,
changing their habits and behaviors. Some of these programs, their goals and achievements are described here: - Participative planning: One of the clearer examples of the pedagogical surplus was the program of “Obras con saldo ciudadano” (Works with a pedagogical surplus)6, part of the projects to promote participative planning. In this program, community associations could present projects for construction or improvement spaces in their neighborhoods. The objective of the projects was, through the planning and realization of a physical intervention in the public space, to reinforce and generate linkages within the neighborhood or community that developed the project. The projects were developed through workshops within the community with the help of technical advisors from the local government. With the participation in the workshops, the different communities would gain points for their projects. At the end, the projects and communities that had been through the whole process could participate in a contest. The price for the winners was the financing of the project. Example of projects that were constructed through this program were neighborhood parks, tree line streets, stairs, playing grounds, pedestrian streets, etc.. This project contributed to the creating of links and sense of belonging within the communities. It also made more transparent and efficient the investment in physical interventions. This would occur more direct between the local government and the community and in this way the project would also be more related to the needs of that community. It involved the community in the planning and in the conception of the public space contributing to tight relations between community members and its public space. People would feel more attached to a space they had worked for and in that way would care for its protection and maintenance.
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-Play actions in the public space: Mimes and zebra crossings One of the most famous action during the Mockus’ administration was developed with Mimes in the public space of the city. The type of interaction that this program aimed was that of the self-regulation between citizens (Bromberg 2003). The goal was “a better coexistence between pedestrians and car drivers and increasing awareness of the convenience of having and following the coexistence rules.” (Mockus 2001)
The actions with the mimes were done in intersections to educate cars to stop before the zebra crossing and to educate pedestrians to cross the street in the marked areas; they were also done in bus stops to educate bus drivers to stop in the right place and passengers to stand there. Before this, it was very normal that you could stand anywhere along a street and just with taking out your arm, busses immediately would stop to pick you up. Nobody respected the assigned stops. This practice, even if still very common was dealt with through the mimes actions.
The mimes stood in corners or near stop buses and with exaggerated gestures would let someone know whether their behaviors were applauded or wrong. For example, a car standing on top of the zebra crossing was shown to be wrong by the performance of the mime and at the same time, by whistling and screaming of the people around. The driver would feel embarrassed and he/she would move the car backwards. If not, a police would intervene. In this way, as Mockus (2001) explains, the police intervention would be the last of a pedagogical ordered sequence where the pedagogical goal was reinforced.
Image of a mime action in a zebra crossing. Photo: El Tiempo
Events in public spaces: aerobics and dancing class in the Ciclovia (Sunday’s bike route) Photos: Camila Pinzon
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Some of the results of this program were the increase of amount of passenger respecting the stops, from 26,6% in 1995 to 38% in 1996. However, this percentage was and is still very low. One of the most successful actions was the one with the zebra crossings. With the support given by many people to the crossing in the right places and the shame of the drivers not respecting it, the citizen alone felt supported and encouraged to use it. Since this time, many people know of the meaning of the zebra crossing, respecting its use. - Others The projects mentioned above were only a small part of a very large list of projects of the civic culture program. Other examples were: Citizen cards: These cards had in one side a hand with the thumb up with white background and on the other, a thumb pointing down in a red background. The cards where distributed between the population and were broadly used for regulation of behaviors in the public space between citizens, pedestrians and drivers.
Both sides of the citizen card (tar jeta ciudadana)
Journeys of Vaccination against violence: people that had been victim of aggression could manifest their anger for this aggression against a puppet filled with balloons where people had written the aggressions they had suffered. It was a way to relieve anger and frustration from the victims, and in general to increase acknowledge and sensibility of the society about this reality, broadly supported by data, especially on child abuse. Mockus (2001) describes as some of the achievements of this program the attention given to the problem by international organizations like the UNICEF and the improvement of the relations between victims and institutions serving them. ‘Hora zanahoria’ (carrot time): reducing the closing time of bars and discotheques to 1am. This measure helped reducing violent deaths by the irresponsible use of alcohol. Reencounter with the public space: Free events where held in parks and squares in order to bring the people back to recognize and use those spaces, and to coexist pacifically in the public space having as binding element the music (for example in the case of Rock al parque).
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the programs, called immense media attention and through this, the program reached many inhabitants even in a national level without cost for the government. As Mockus explains (Segura 2005), the media helped a lot because of curiosity and responsibility, but also because of the novelty which made the media very enthusiastic about the initiatives. In that time, there was not local television, so the programs became of national interest, shown in national news.
Through the program of ‘Obras with a Pedagogical saldo’ many neighbourhood parks and public spaces were created or renovated. Photos: Joris Jenniskens
Why small? and how large? All the actions described in this text and in general those related to the program of civic culture of the administration of Mockus for Bogotá are small in the sense of the limited infrastructure they needed to be developed and the low budged spent on them. But these small actions were framed within a very clear discourse and with specific objectives linked to the very essence of the urban inhabitant and his/her coexistence with other citizens in the urban space. The effectivity of the actions relates to the discourse framing them, immersed in the idea of education. The large framework of the program was to educate the inhabitants of the city into citizens, using the public space as a neutral space of common negotiation and participation and, as Mockus promised in his plan of government, to enhance their sense of belonging and commitment to the city. Another important aspect in the success of the program was the repetition. Local interventions repeated in different areas of the city and magnified by the use of the media. The innovative of
Number of homicides in Bogotá 1991-2000. Source: Acero
Number of deaths in traffic accident in Bogotá 1991-2000. Source: Acero The effectivity of these actions was also proved by data in posterior analyzes. The annual rate of homicides per 100.000 inhabitants went from 72 (1994) to 51 (1997) and the rate of deaths in traffic
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accidents per 100.000 inhabitants from 25 to 20. (Mockus 2003) Other data was less children burnt by fireworks since their use was prohibited and only allowed to experts, and with the program of saving water, a deficit crisis was prevented. Besides this quantitative proof, the fact that some programs were implemented in other Colombian cities shows the broad reach of the initiatives. The continuity within the following majors of the civic culture idea is also a sign of its success. Even with the common reluctance of new majors to continue the programs of the previous one, the plan of civic culture because of its popularity was continued in some of its actions by the Peñalosa administration. This acted as a sort of bridge with the next period of Mockus. (Roa 2003) Finally, some perceptions that can not be proven with data are the fact that practices almost unknown before became normal for the citizens, assumed nowadays as essential without question. These are for example the use of safety belt and the uses and respect of the Zebra crossings. When Mockus talks about the efficiency of those programs he affirms how “They have all promoted moral and cultural self-bindings, and mutual bindings” (Antanas Mockus Sivickas 2003). As Bromberg explains, one of the biggest lessons from some of the programs was dealing with the interpersonal regulation (Bromberg 2003). 1. last consulted 24/06/2007 2. Antanas Mockus was major of Bogota twice, in the periods 1995-1997 and 2001-2003. Enrique Peñalosa was major between 1998 and 2000 3. “Por cultura ciudadana se entiende el conjunto de costumbres, acciones y reglas mínimas compartidas que generan sentido de pertenencia, facilitan la convivencia urbana y conducen al respeto del patrimonio común y al reconocimiento de los derechos y deberes ciudadanos.” (1995). Formar Ciudad. Plan de desarrollo Economico, Social, y de Obras Publicas para Santafe de Bogota, 1995 - 1998 Decreto No 295 de Junio 1 de 1995. Authour’s translation. 4. ‘Saldo’ has the same meaning in Spanish and in Dutch. The English translation would be remainder, balance or surplus. 5. This was mentioned by Mockus during an interview with the Group on June 2006; but it is also written in all the documents and interventions of Mockus in the civic culture subject. 6. Obras con saldo pedagogico
References (1995). Formar Ciudad. Plan de desarrollo Economico, Social, y de Obras Publicas para Santafe de Bogota, 1995 - 1998 Decreto No 295 de Junio 1 de 1995. Acero, H. Seguridad y convivencia en Bogotá: logros y retos 1995-2001. Retrieved 29.01.2008 from http://www.flacso.org.ec/docs/sfsegacero.pdf Bromberg, P. (2003). Ingenieros y profetas, transformaciones dirigdas de comportamientos colectivos. Reflexiones sobre cultura ciudadana en Bogotá. O. d. c. urbana. Bogotá, Alcaldia Mayor de Bogota, IDRD. Mockus, A. (2001). “Cultura ciudadana, programa contra la violencia en Santa Fe de Bogotá,Colombia, 1995-1997.” Retrieved 22/05/2007, 2007, from http://www.iadb.org/ sds/soc. Mockus, A. (2003). “Do Constitutions Constrain: Self-Bindings to Prevent Shortcuts.” Columbia 250 Constitutions, Democracy, and the Rule of Law Do Constitutions Constrain? Retrieved 22.05.2007, 2007, from http://c250.columbia. edu/c250_events/symposia/constitutions/ transcripts/constitutions_d1_3.pdf. Roa, R. M. (2003). La encuesta de Cultuta Ciudadana hecha en 2001 para governar hasta 2003. Reflexiones sobre cultura ciudadana en Bogotá. O. d. c. urbana. Bogotá, Alcaldia Mayor de Bogota, IDRD. Segura, M., Ed. (2005). CONVERSACIONES CON BOGOTA 1945 - 2005. Bogota, Sello Editorial Lonja de Propiedad Raíz de Bogota.
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caracas - Venezuela: photoreport katerina chrysanthopoulou
entering Caracas by bus
view from La Bandera
Ciudad Universitaria
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Ciudad Universitaria
Plaza Venezuela metro station
Savanna Grande
open book market
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Ciudad Universitaria
Plaza de la Revolution
Simon Bolivar statue
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Almere letters no.1
- The Trojan Horse
Ekim tan
You, the ‘ordinary’ individual! Now log onto the municipality’s digital plot-shop, pick yourself a piece of land from and realize the house of your dreams. Welcome to 21st century city generation in Almere, the ‘adolescent’ new town of the Netherlands. Urban developers, large-scale construction firms and housing corporations are pushed off the stage and finally now you are given the chance to become the producer of your city. Your local government wants you to be proactive, creative and engaged!
This is not just a bunch of housing projects attached to a new town but the largest housing production endeavor of the coming decades in the Netherlands. 60.000 new homes are envisioned to be built by 2030, one-third (20.000) of which is to be customized by their owners. Driven by the motto ‘Ik bouw mijn huis in Almere/ I build my house in Almere’, this city would be created not only for people but by them. This strategy is expected to deliver a more complex, unpredictable, and spontaneous city than the carefully engineered and controlled one of the present. Does this mean the end of the standardized, normalized, and overregulated Dutch housing production machine? Could this mean the prospect of informality in a system of controlled formality? Obviously traditional actors and mechanisms producing the city need an entire adaptation. This change will take generations of evolving design processes. It is important to interpret the ongoing developments in Almere as a natural consequence of a changing economy and a welfare state in transition. Production and consumption processes are changing, as do practices of governance. It was 1993 when Joseph Pine came out with his book ‘Mass Customization’. He was basically pointing out emerging systems of new customized production, such as in the car industry in competi-
tive countries like Japan. For governance, it is no longer revolutionary to see cities as a collection of self-organizing complex systems where both bottom-up and top-down processes intermingle. What still needs to be clarified is the position of the people and the designer in relation to these changing complex conditions. More collaborative approaches are natural as the information becomes accessible for bigger crowd, society gets more complex, life styles more diverse, individuals more conscious, critical and demanding than ever before. And open systems allow everyone to take part in complicated processes. [e.g. wikipedia, second life] Companies like Philips and Nike are among the ones who understand this trend, they create departments specializing in ‘user centric design approach’. One can go to ‘http://nikeid.nike. com and start customizing the dream clothing and shoe with favorite colors, textures, materials. This will definitely have its reflection on the field of architecture. It on the other hand reminds architects bitter experiences of 60’s and 70’s, mainly colored by political influences of that day. However, this time dynamics are completely different. At that time people, advocate planners and leftist architects were asking their participation rights, today politicians, companies, planners are in need for active and responsible people for taking part in developments.
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Talking about less formal urbanism, participation and customization let us now travel from Almere to Istanbul. Once the customized heaven of informality, the city still carries strong traces of self-made garden towns [gecekondu]. This ‘selfservice’ city of officially 14.000.000 inhabitants is generated in the absence of a visionary and powerful state and uncontrollable market economy. Not surprisingly, the city did not produce a single globally renowned architect or planner in the last century. It is not a question of talent. Architects, rather, were disconnected from the means of urban space production. They ignored a peopledriven market and the market ignored them. As a result strong-willed individuals, poor or rich, have become the active participants and producers of Istanbul’s communities. This explains very well Istanbul’s disappointed elite modernists who could not participate in the construction of their city. Things could have been much different if the gap had been smaller between the energy of the ‘ordinary’ people and architects.
Gulensu: an evolutionary neighborhood in Istanbul
OMA: concept plan for Homeruskwartier
However, participation-phobia of architects seems to be universal and rather timeless. Do participatory processes per se really diminish the influence of the architect and result in middle-of-the-road architecture? Will democratization of space production result in banal environments? We mentioned sour memories of architects from 60’s and 70’s. To my opinion today architects need to invest in finding out inventive interfaces enabling them to relate to users. This way results can still be product of a specialist but much more representative of given complexities. Elia Zenghelis, current research board member of Berlage Institute, in his speech during the Rotterdam Architectural Biennial 2007 ‘Power’ in Kunsthal was rather bold about this issue: ‘Architecture by nature is top down and participation is a Trojan Horse. Nobody can reject it and it causes damage after all!’ One thing to consider before calling participation the Trojan Horse is the already questionable position of the architect in the context of the everinfluential market economy. As Dennis Kaspori in ‘A Communism of Ideas’ [2003, Archis] wrote: ‘The role of the architect in the building process would seem to have been reduced to that of a
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visagiste. The complete absence of any architect in the recent parliamentary enquiry into fraud in the construction industry should probably not be seen as evidence of their irrefutable morality, but as proof that they play hardly any part in Dutch spatial planning. The architect is happily doodling away indoors while the big boys are outside building huts.’ Choices are clear: stylist and working for big boys or activist and working with people. After 100 years of regulated and top-down organized housing practice, Dutch citizens are now called to take charge of this practice and transform themselves into developers. Settlements built by conscious and responsible users are envisioned as a strategy for generating a more dynamic city. Evolutionary Istanbul neighborhoods like Gulensu or Karanfilkoy -- first informally built by their inhabitants – are living example of this. In these places users’ needs and their adaptations in time can be expressed and observed through physical space. Obviously Almere’s inhabitants will have their own urgencies and dynamics that will differ from those of Istanbul. Diversity is high on this list, with a 27% foreign-born population that is second only to Rotterdam, an increasing rate of single mothers and the elderly. The challenge is about how free individuals will find a way to reflect the complexity of the society under existing rules and regulations structures. How will Dutch architects position themselves now? As the welfare state slowly modifies and market forces take over, developer friends might choose to take the short cut. Just as it happened in Istanbul they may decide to ignore their cool architect friends one day. Or architects may choose to take the role of an activist and seek out new ways of connecting with the society. A way will be found in engaging people and releasing the complexity of the current society through self-organizing environments. This is where the innovation in architecture will take place in 21st century.
Ekim Tan is an architect and currently running her doctoral thesis on ‘Evolutionary Human Habitat Environments and Theories of Self Organization’. As an independent researcher, she monitors ongoing urban developments in Almere and Istanbul /Gulensu. Letters from Almere is a series of articles monitoring ongoing experimental growth processes in the new town of Almere. r.e.tan@tudelft.nl Recently Floris Alkemade of OMA has been given the task of coordinating the first part of Almere’s self-organizing extension to be activated by people, Homeruskwartier. 75 percent of the first 3000 houses are to be produced by individuals, a process also known as Particulier Opdrachgevershap [PO]. Examples on display in the Netherlands are Borneo Sporenburg on Amsterdam’s eastern waterfront, Roombeek in Enschede, and Nieuw Leyden in Leiden. The PO process is not exactly invention of the Almere plan. Next column of ‘Letters from Almere’ will be focusing on this plan and will be questioning potentials and boundaries of PO in relation to Collective PO.
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Do-it yourself Prosperity katerina chrysanthopoulou & cristina ampatzidou
Urban space is transformed continuously. This transformation is hardly ever the outcome of a decision. And although decisions on specific matters have effects and give to urban space its present shape, it is never one person’s vision, not even of a group of people. The city is considered by many contemporary thinkers as a system, an organism with emergent behaviour. Nobody has an overview of the whole system and the forces that keep it in continuous transformation. What each one does, how he reacts to his environment, global forces and higher scale interventions are all actors which provoke the emergent properties. On the other hand the ability to give direction to these transformations should not be underestimated. Urban space is after all, where our civilisations are formulated and expressed. We have the ability to push development to certain directions and to prevent negative situations from taking place. It is not the idea that urban complexity can be perceived in total but the consciousness of this potential steering which legitimizes the specialization of a profession dedicated to understanding and planning urban space. The abstract and ever changing urban space is reflecting life and society itself. Enacted power, everyday activities and the fluidity of people and forces are all powers enabling a continuous transformation. The way each of those powers act on urban space and attribute certain values is either out of spontaneous or determinative processes by professionals or users or by them joining forces. On the one hand everyday inhabitation brings multiple transformations to urban space. It changes when somebody builds a house, when
somebody meets a loved one, when somebody sits on the bench, when somebody eats outside in the garden, when somebody runs to catch the bus, when somebody writes all the above on a wall. Trajectories, actions, events, decisions, massive or personal, are inscribed on the urban fabric either as flow or momentum either as actual trace. On the other hand designs and strategies made by professionals in collaboration with the inhabitants push development to certain paths and stops space from acquiring undesired attributes. But this collaboration could be perceived in two ways. One is the participatory design, an idea that dates back in the 70s practice which was trying to bring the user to the level of the designer giving him the power he didn’t have before. But although their relation could be perceived as one of power, where the designer as the traditional decision maker and knowledge possessor is overpowering the ignorant and chaotic user, it fails to provide with an alternative way of combining the qualities of each group to a creative whole. There is an inherent knowledge into each one of us, which allows us to walk back to our house, to go shopping, to open our window when it is warm and helps avoiding getting hit by passing cars. This is not something we learn but something that is emerging through the contact with our direct environment. This emergent knowledge is principally ignored by the urbanist, who does not live, work, and move in the environment which he is called to design. What he has to offer is knowledge on patterns, global forces and flows that shape urban space in certain ways as well as insights on threats and possibilities inherent in certain spatial situations.
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Prosperity Village Perica PROJECT The issue that comes forward is that the inhabitants and the decision makers (politicians, designers, experts) come from different worlds but it is precisely their difference, where the quality of the dualism designer-inhabitant lies within. The above mentioned conditions provide a suitable context for the exploration of the relation between the designer and the inhabitant. The specific project that brought forward the above issues and speculations is the case of a small village called Perica located in Marowijne district in Suriname. A foundation called Prosperity Village Perica was formed by the inhabitants in order to develop a strategy for the prosperous future of the village. An interdisciplinary project was formed which involved the inhabitants, Haagsehogerschool and TU Delft Spacelab. In the framework of a graduation project, four students of urbanism were called to bring together these different worlds in a spatial strategy.
SURINAME Suriname is almost entirely covered by forest with all urbanisation happening along the north coast. Half of the country’s population inhabits Paramaribo and the rest is sparsely distributed.
Suriname is characterised by a great ethnic disercity and harmonic coexistence
Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname, is a typical example of a colonial grid laid on a virgin landscape, to host the highest concentration of functions in the country. Yet, the local life is much different and the coexistence of the imposed grid
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their life thinking no further than tomorrow. This creates a day-to-day culture, expressed spatially in simple, easy to built constructions and temporal economies.
Urban development in Suriname
with the informal, outdoor way of living is what gives to Paramaribo its exceptional character. The settlements of the north coast retrieve space from the jungle. On both a spatial and economic level, life is organized around the lack of infrastructure. The catholic use of local conditions by each individual create a structure on a higher level, that of the settlement or the region. There is a hierarchy of settlements deriving from the common logic, based on which villages are organized near to land that is possible to cultivate and nodal access points, as roads and rivers. Trapped in the functionalities of their surrounding, they know the consequences of their choices but not the possibilities that their environment has to offer. The civil war and the still existing “state of emergency� in Marowjine, the north-west region of Suriname, has been preventing any form of investment to take place as no guarantees for the future can be provided. As development is held back, people are forced to live in a similar way: unable to think in a long time span, they live
aspects of urban life in Suriname
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METHOD The design method is sensitive towards the locality and tools as interviews and inhabitations are resulting in an inside knowledge which help to complete the image and link the users with a global condition. It is an exchange of perceptions. In order for this exchange to take place the urbanist, not yet as a designer but still in a coordinating role, has to be informed on the globality of the place. An outside – in approach comes prior to meeting the specific spatial conditions. This first step is an intensive research on the position of Suriname and Perica on the global map: established economies, cultures, histories, flows, connections and studies on resembling cases and examples. A theoretical background and preliminary methodological tools are also built during this stage. This preparation is necessary to later be able to come in contact with the local scale and establish a common ground to listen to the inhabitants. The background knowledge gained by the first study allows the designer to make connections between practical local knowledge and processes that come together on a higher level and to form a coherent understanding in order to advise certain actions.
The designer is taking up the role of bringing together his view of a global reality, while the inhabitants feed in with their local knowledge. The first is producing a plan which the inhabitants are called to realize and adapt.
The final outcome does not have the fixed state of a master plan. It has the form of advices on how certain aspects can be directed towards certain paths. It falls within the designer’s responsibility to prevent scenarios of undesirable overdevelopment, of short term solutions and highly profitable actions with enormous environmental consequences. Strategies, small interventions and micro scale actions can act as catalysers towards a sustainable and balanced system in a context where the biggest threat is environmentally disastrous development. Taking into consideration that small actions can provoke large changes, should lead to an alternative way of approaching ones design task. A balanced relationship between the designer and the inhabitant is possible without the first taking up the role of the decision maker and the second keeping the role of the user of the final spatial outcome. The creative acknowledgment and sharing of their perspectives can lead in a healthy urban ecology.
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Rainbow - Sander Scholte
a step by step bottom up analysis of La Castellana street in Madrid, Spain, coming from five to the blindfolded subject unknown, metro stations alo of the street - an experience based rainbow of emotions is formed - a non-visul experience transformed into a visual analysis - this analysis is part
ong La Castellana - dociment this non visual experience through drawing and emotion - the resulting color for each staion/location is placed on the map t of a one week workshop in the Universidad Plytechnica de Madrid in November 2007where alternate ways to analyse urban settings were explored
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Stedelijke vernieuwing Meer en Vaart buurt in Amsterdam West een succes? Paul Lakenman & Paul Stouten
Dit artikel is gebaseerd op het onderzoek “stedelijke vernieuwing Meer en Vaart buurt; een succes?” dat Paul Lakenman heeft verricht in het kader van het keuzeproject ‘Urban regeneration: design in districts of transformation’ waarvan Paul Stouten coördinator is. Dit keuzeproject wordt aangeboden als onderdeel van het tweede master semester van urbanism. Het onderzoek is een evaluatie van de woonsituatie door de huidige bewoners. Deze evaluatie is gericht op een vergelijking van de nieuwe woonsituatie met de oude situatie die het gevolg is van sloop van woningen en schoolgebouwen. Het gaat in de evaluatie zowel om het (tussen) resultaat van fysieke en sociale maatregelen als gevolg van stedelijke vernieuwing. Vanaf de jaren ’70 heeft stedelijke vernieuwing een bijdrage geleverd aan het vernieuwen en verbeteren van woning en stedelijke ruimte, zodat deze voldoen aan de hedendaagse eisen. 1 Evenals in andere (middel)grote steden vindt sinds de jaren negentig een proces van stedelijke herstructurering plaats, dat onderdeel uitmaakt van stedelijke vernieuwingsprojecten die over de gehele stad plaatsvinden. De complexiteit van deze opgave is vergroot doordat er sprake is van afstemming en afweging op verschillende beleidsterreinen met effecten en ambities die over wijk- en stadsgrenzen heengaan. Met de discussie over de aanwijzing van de veertig zogenaamde probleemwijken die moeten worden ontwikkeld tot prachtwijken komt deze problematiek opnieuw in de schijnwerpers. De vorige minister had het over 140 probleemwijken, die daarvoor had 56 wijken aangewezen terwijl corporaties tot een veelvoud van deze aantallen komen. Belangrijke indicatoren zijn kwaliteit van woning en woonomgeving, hoogte van werkloosheid, opleiding en inkomen, mate van overlast en onveiligheid. Deze vernieuwde aandacht voor ‘oorspronkelijke’ achterstandsgebieden, ‘probleemcumulatiegebieden’, sociale vernieuwing, aandachtswijken en probleemwijken worden gevoed met een overheidsbeleid, vanaf de jaren tachtig, waardoor sociale ongelijkheid toenam, in een periode van economische herstructurering
wereldwijd, economische recessie, bezuinigingen op sociale voorzieningen met herziening van het concept verzorgingsstaat. Amsterdam staat met vijf, van de veertig, aangewezen wijken op de tweede plaats. Opvallend is het grote aantal woningen dat op de slooplijst van de betrokken corporaties staat. Deze omvangrijke en ingrijpende sloopmaatregel kan de woonsituatie wellicht verbeteren maar of dat ook geldt voor de sociaal-economische positie van deze te slopen of reeds gesloopte woningen is twijfelachtig. In dit artikel beperken we ons tot een evaluatie van een woningbouwproject in de Meer en Vaart buurt in Amsterdam west, een wijk die op de meeste lijstjes van de afgelopen jaren vermeld staat. Het project en daarmee de gekozen ontwerpprincipes van nieuwe collectieve woongebouwen, met een hoge mate van differentiatie met tal van woningtypen rondom gemeenschappelijke binnenterreinen in compacte bouwblokken zullen, de komende jaren navolging krijgen. De nieuwe stedenbouwkundige structuur is een structurele verandering van de oorspronkelijke strokenverkaveling. Ingrijpende wijzigingen van de stedenbouwkundige structuur kunnen ook voor projecten in deze wijk en andere wijken gaan gelden. Deze verandering zal directe gevolgen hebben voor de (toekomstige) bewoners en daarom is een
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evaluatie door de bewoners van dit project met haar ontwerpprincipes relevant. In dit artikel staat de vraag in hoeverre volgens de bewoners door de nieuwbouw de kwaliteit van hun woning, openbare ruimte en leefbaarheid is verbeterd centraal. In het totaal hebben 17 bewoners aan het onderzoek meegewerkt. Bij de selectie is rekening gehouden met diversiteit van de bevolking; qua samenstelling van het huishouden, leeftijd en etniciteit. Voorafgaand aan de interviews met bewoners heeft een gesprek plaatsgevonden met de complexbeheerder en (voormalig) buurtbeheerder die in dienst is van de Algemene Woningbouw Vereniging (AWV).
Stedelijke vernieuwing Stedelijke vernieuwing is er op gericht om het leefklimaat van stadswijken te verbeteren. Dat kan bijvoorbeeld door de wijk opnieuw in te richten, woningen te verbouwen of nieuwe woningen neer te zetten, maar ook door allerlei maatregelen op sociaal of economisch gebied. Het doel van al deze maatregelen is de wijk gedurende langere tijd leefbaarder te maken en te verbeteren.2 De stedelijke vernieuwing vindt hierom voornamelijk plaats in de gebieden/buurten waar sprake is van sociale en of economische problemen of andere achterstanden. Wel moet opgemerkt worden dat de buurt ongetwijfeld een belangrijke basis is voor de verbetering van de sociale en economische situatie van de bewoners, maar tegelijkertijd zijn een groot aantal problemen zoals armoede en werkeloosheid structureel en het oplossen daarvan overstijgt het schaalniveau van de buurt. 3 Voor het onderzoek zijn een aantal begrippen gebruikt. Deze begrippen zijn stedelijke vernieuwing, leefbaarheid en kwaliteit. Stedelijke vernieuwing: (zoals in de Wet op stedelijke vernieuwing) “Op stedelijk gebied gerichte inspanningen die strekken tot verbetering van de leefbaarheid en veiligheid, bevordering van een duurzame ontwikkeling en verbetering van de woon- en milieukwaliteit, versterking van het economisch draagvlak, bevordering van de sociale samenhang, verbetering van de bereikbaarheid, verhoging van
de kwaliteit van de openbare ruimte of anderszins tot structurele kwaliteitsverhoging van dat stedelijk gebied�. 4 Leefbaarheid: Met leefbaarheid in dit onderzoek wordt bedoeld: de sociale aspecten rondom de fysieke ruimte en de door huidige bewoners gemaakte evaluatie daarvan. Leefbaarheid wil zeggen de dagelijkse activiteiten die plaatsvinden in de openbare ruimte en de woning. Dagelijkse activiteiten zoals wonen in algemeen (slapen, eten etc) parkeren, het aankomen en weggaan, het laten buitenspelen van de kinderen etc. Vanwege het korte tijdsbestek van dit onderzoek is er voor gekozen om te kijken naar de kern van de dagelijkse activiteiten, dit zijn namelijk de activiteiten die zich vaak voor doen. Kwaliteit: Kwaliteit kan als volgt worden omschreven: kwaliteit is de geschiktheid van gebruik. De vergelijking van producteigenschappen (eigenschappen van bijvoorbeeld een fysiek element) met de verwachtingen van de gebruiker vormen in deze benadering een graadmeter voor de kwaliteit.5 Bij de producteigenschappen kan gedacht worden aan de veiligheid, functionaliteit en uiterlijk.
Stedelijke Vernieuwing in West De stedelijke vernieuwing was ongeveer 15 jaar geleden in drie buurten begonnen met een aantal voorbeeldprojecten. Op dat moment waren de sociale huurwoningen in het beheer van niet minder dan twaalf woningbouwverenigingen. Door deze woningbouwverenigingen werd zonder enige vorm van samenwerking tot tien jaar geleden gewerkt aan renovaties van winkelpleinen, parken en hier en daar werden voorzieningen en groenstroken ingevuld met meestal woningbouwprojecten. Op deze wijze zijn tussen 1970 en 1990 9.000 woningen aan de oorspronkelijke woningvoorraad van 45.000 toegevoegd die al gebouwd waren voor 1970. In
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1998 werd besloten om meer samenhang te brengen in de planvorming door samenwerking van een groot deel van de aanwezige woningcorporaties en vertegenwoordigers van stadsdeelorganisaties. Bureau Parkstad was de éénwording van deze samenwerking. De belangrijkste opgave van Bureau Parkstad was het maken van een ontwikkelingsplan. Dit ontwikkelingsplan voor Parkstad 2015 heeft als belangrijke opgave om een hoogwaardig woongebied te ontwikkelen dat een unieke en geheel nieuwe stad zal gaan vormen in de Randstad met een eigen vitale kern in de regio. Om dit te realiseren is de planning in Amsterdam West om ongeveer 13.000 van de 54.000 woningen te slopen en 24000, in totaal 11.000 meer, woningen er voor terug te bouwen. Met deze aanpak wordt de verhouding tussen het aantal koopwoningen en huurwoningen ingrijpend veranderd. Het aandeel koopwoningen zal volgens de plannen toenemen tot veertig procent.6 Dit gaat ten koste van aandeel woningwetwoningen (zie afbeelding 1).
1. Toekomstvisie woningmarkt Amsterdam Nieuw West. De locatie van dit onderzoek de wijk Meer en Vaart bevindt zich in Amsterdam West en wordt in het document concept Meerjaren Ontwikkelingsprogramma Amsterdam 2005-2009 beschreven als een ontwikkelingsgebied. Dit geldt ook voor heel Amsterdam West. De kenmerken van deze ontwikkelingsgebieden zijn een grote concentratie van problemen, die een intensieve, integrale aanpak vereisen, waarbij de rol van de overheid waarschijnlijk groot zal zijn. De voornaamste doelen van de gemeente Amsterdam voor deze gebieden zijn het verhogen van kwaliteit, het bevorderen van leefbaarheid en het optimaliseren van het grondgebruik.7 De verdere
uitwerking van de plannen voor de stedelijke vernieuwing in Amsterdam West is beschreven in het document Richting Parkstad 2015. Hierin wordt een beleid voor heel Amsterdam West beschreven. De locatie van het onderzoek is één van de eerste wijken in Amsterdam West waar stedelijke vernieuwing plaatsvindt. Na deze wijk zullen nog vele wijken volgen waar hetzelfde beleid zal worden aangehouden. Belangrijk voor het onderzoek is dat de stedelijke vernieuwing van de hele buurt nog niet af is en dat dit onderzoek is uitgevoerd één jaar na de oplevering van het woongebouw waar de respondenten wonen.
De Meer en Vaart buurt Algemeen In deze paragraf wordt een beschrijving van de buurt van voor en na de stedelijke vernieuwing gegeven. In de oude situatie woonde de onderzoekspopulatie verdeeld over vier blokken (zie afbeelding 3). Van de beide situaties wordt een plattegrond gepresenteerd en uitleg gegeven over de openbare ruimte, gemeenschappelijke ruimte en de woning. De stedelijke vernieuwing is momenteel halverwege. Oude bouwblokken zijn gesloopt en de bewoners van de voormalige woningen in deze wijk hebben bijna allemaal een nieuwe woning gevonden (zie afbeelding 2).
2. Herhuisvesting Bron: Parkstad/Meer en Oever, december 2005, jaargang 4
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Een groot deel van deze bewoners heeft een woning gevonden in de nieuwbouw in dezelfde wijk. De bewoners van de 109 woningen van het “Bastion” behoren tot deze groep. In afbeelding 3 wordt de verkaveling van beide situaties weergegeven. De rood gearceerde woonblokken (de directe woonomgeving) zijn de blokken waar de onderzoekspopulatie heeft gewoond (zie 3A) of nu woont (zie 3B). De gestippelde lijn geeft de grens aan van het gebied dat stedelijke vernieuwing ondergaat.
3. De oude en nieuwe situatie. De directe woonomgeving en de plangrens van het gebied dat stedelijke vernieuwing ondergaat.
groenstroken hadden een omvang van ongeveer 3800 m2. In de loop van tijd was dit uit gegroeid tot een groenrijke omgeving (zie afbeelding 5). Elk blok was voorzien van 45-50 parkeerplekken. Het totale complex had ook nog eens 52 individuele parkeergarages. De blokken zelf waren ontsloten door middel van doodlopende straten. De speelvoorzieningen waren geplaatst in de groenstrook en op drie van de vier groenstroken bevonden zich speelelementen.
4. Oude situatie
In de volgende paragraven volgt de beschrijving van de beide situaties, die betrekking heeft op de directe woonomgeving van de bewoners.
De oude situatie De oude Meer en Vaartblokken waren in december 1958 opgeleverd. De blokken waren ontworpen door de architect Arthur Staal. De vier L-vormige flats telden vier verdiepingen en hadden geen lift. Het totaal aantal woningen was 272. De woningen waren allen sociale huurwoningen. Het complex telde 112 drie –en vierkamerwoningen, 16 tweekamerwoningen en 32 eenkamerwoningen. Er waren geen woningen op de begane grond. De woningen bevonden zich op etage één tot en met vier (afbeeldingfiguur 4). Openbare ruimte De bouwblokken waren voorzien van een groenstrook aan de voor- en achterzijde. Deze
5. Buitenruimte oude situatie Gemeenschappelijke ruimte In de blokken bestond de gemeenschappelijke ruimte uit een portiek en boxgang. Op één portiek waren 8 of 12 woningen ontsloten. De portiek gaf ook toegang tot de boxgang en de boxen van de 8 of 12 woningen. Naast de boxen hadden de bewoners ook een zolderruimte op de bovenste verdieping.
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Woning De woningen waren alle appartementen, verschillend in grootte en aantal kamers. De éénkamerwoningen waren 25-30m2, de tweekamerwoningen waren 35-40m2, de driekamerwoningen waren 45-50m2 en de vierkamerwoningen waren 55-60m2. De indeling van de woning was gecentreerd rondom een centrale hal waar de bewoner binnen kwam. Vanuit deze centrale hal waren alle vertrekken behalve de douche te bereiken. Alleen de centrale hal en de WC grensden niet aan een buitenwand. Alle overige vertrekken hadden daglicht. De meeste woningen hadden 2 balkons (of loggia’s) één aan de straatzijde en één aan de achterzijde (noordzuid of oost-west georiënteerd dit vanwege de L-vormige plattegrond van de blokken). De huur van de woningen lag rond de 250 Euro.8 (afbeelding 6)
De nieuwe situatie
6. Woningtypes oude situatie
7. Nieuwe situatie.
Het nieuwe woonblok ‘Het Bastion’ is een moderne flat en is opgeleverd in juli 2006. Het Bastion is ontworpen door het architectenbureau van Dam en Partners. De plattegrond van het gebouw heeft wat weg van een driehoek, dat met de punt naar het zuiden is georiënteerd. Het gebouw telt tien verdiepingen en heeft 4 liften. Het gebouw heeft in totaal 148 woningen, waarvan 80 driekamer woningen, 18 vierkamerwoningen, 20 vijfkamerwoningen, 10 WIBO-woningen (Wonen in Beschermde Omgeving voor ouderen), 10 RoWo-woningen (Rolstoelwoningen voor mensen met een lichamelijke handicap) en tenslotte 10 duurdere huurwoningen (vrije sector). Op de begane grond van het gebouw bevinden zich drie verschillende maatschappelijke voorzieningen, namelijk kinderopvang voor kinderen met een handicap (Cordaan), Vrouw en Vaart (zie www.vrouwenvaart.nl) en RIBW-PC Hooft. Deze instelling heeft een dagopvang voor geestelijk gehandicapte en /of eenzame ouderen gerealiseerd. Verder is er een ruimte voor de complexbeheerder.9 (Afbeelding 7)
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Openbare ruimte De openbare ruimte zal worden uitgelegd aan de hand van de situatie van mei 2007, 1 jaar na oplevering. Afbeelding 8 laat de situatie zien zoals deze uiteindelijk moet worden als de stedelijke vernieuwing klaar is.10 Het Bastion is aan twee kanten omringd door groene velden. De situatie nu is dat het groen nog erg jong is en daarom niet sterk aanwezig, ook is een gedeelte nog niet gerealiseerd. Aan de oostkant van het complex is een meertje gerealiseerd. Aan de noordkant van het gebouw (de voorzijde/entree) ligt de parkeerplaats (57 parkeerplekken), naast deze parkeerplaats heeft het gebouw ook een parkeergarage. De parkeergarage heeft 83 parkeerplekken. Aan de noordzijde ligt de President Allendenlaan, een grote drukke verkeersader en aan de westzijde komt in de toekomst ook een belangrijke verkeersader te liggen: de Meer en Vaart. Op het moment is er slechts ĂŠĂŠn plek met speelvoorzieningen voor de kinderen. Deze ligt ten zuiden van het gebouw. Het speelveldje dat er moet komen is nog niet gerealiseerd (afbeelding 9).
8. Stedelijke vernieuwing als deze klaar is!
9. Buitenruimte nieuwe situatie. Gemeenschappelijke ruimte In het Bastion bestaat de gemeenschappelijke ruimten uit de twee centrale hallen, de parkeergarage, boxgangen, de liften en de galerijen die de woningen ontsluiten. Het gebouw heeft twee entrees. Elke entree komt uit op een centrale hal met twee liften die in totaal 74 woningen ontsluiten. Vanaf de vijfde etage is het mogelijk door te lopen (over de galerij) naar de liften aan de andere kant. Het aantal woningen dat per etage wordt ontsloten verschild. De parkeergarage (moet per maand voor betaald worden) en de boxen bevinden zich in de kelder, half verdiept onder het maaiveld. Met de fiets of brommer is het alleen mogelijk de boxen te bereiken via de parkeergarage. Woning De woningen van het complex Bastion zijn alle appartementen, verschillend in grootte en aantal kamers. De driekamerwoningen zijn 75 m2, de vierkamerwoningen zijn 90m2, de vijfkamerwoningen zijn 100m2, de wibowoningen zijn 90m2 en de RoWo-woningen zijn 135m2. De kosten lopen uiteen van 485 Euro voor de driekamerwoning tot 520 Euro voor de vier -en vijfkamerwoningen. De vijfkamerwoningen zijn (relatief) goedkoper om wonen voor grote gezinnen betaalbaar te houden. De indeling van de woning is bepaald door de galerij ontsluiting. De vertrekken van de woning liggen om een centrale gang die in de meeste gevallen leidt tot de huiskamer. De gang, wc, douche en keuken liggen
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inpandig. Op de vierkamerwoningen na hebben alle woningen een balkon. De oriĂŤntatie van het balkon is afhankelijk de locatie van de woning binnen het gebouw. (oriĂŤntatie balkons: oost, west en zuid) afbeelding 10.
De voorzieningen die momenteel minder zijn: de groenvoorzieningen, de speel-voorzieningen en de winkel-voorzieningen. De groenvoorzieningen ten westen van het gebouw zijn nog niet gerealiseerd, overigens zijn er ook nog niet veel bomen te zien. In het plan is ten zuiden van het woongebouw een trapveldje gepland, deze is nog niet gerealiseerd en momenteel zijn er slechts twee speelelementen in de directe omgeving van het gebouw. In de drie geplande bouwblokken ten oosten van het Bastion moeten de winkelvoorzieningen nog worden gerealiseerd.
10. Woningtypes nieuwe situatie.
Onderzoeksresultaten
11. Binnen het gebied dat stedelijke vernieuwing ondergaat (stippellijn) is een gedeelte nog niet gerealiseerd. Dit is zeer belangrijk voor het resultaat van het onderzoek.
Vorderingen stedelijke vernieuwing In afbeelding 11 ziet u het gebied dat stedelijke vernieuwing ondergaat en het rood gearceerde gebied geeft het gedeelte aan dat nog niet klaar is. Dit heeft verregaande consequenties voor het voorzieningenniveau op dit moment.
Openbare ruimte en gemeenschappelijke ruimte De openbare ruimte en gemeenschappelijke ruimte gaan over de fysieke ruimte buiten de woning. In de oude situatie geven de respondenten aan tevreden te zijn over de kwaliteit van de groenvoorzieningen, de hoeveelheid van de groenvoorzieningen, speelvoorzieningen (tot 12 jaar) en de parkeergelegenheid. De respondenten zijn zo goed als niet negatief over de openbare ruimte/gemeenschappelijke ruimte van de oude situatie. In de nieuwe situatie zijn de respondenten tevreden over het uiterlijk van de openbare ruimte, daarnaast is de lift een verbetering. De respondenten zijn ontevreden over de kwaliteit van de huidige groenvoorzieningen, de hoeveelheid van de groenvoorzieningen en de parkeergelegenheid. Deze resultaten hebben betrekking op de huidige situatie, waarin de stedelijke vernieuwing nog niet geheel af is. Daarnaast zijn de respondenten ontevreden met de plaats van de garage binnen het woongebouw. De respondenten geven aan dat zij zich in de avonduren niet veilig voelen in de garage, dit komt volgens bewoners omdat jongeren er rondhangen. Het gebouw Met betrekking tot het woongebouw zijn twee stellingen gevraagd. Over stelling “de ontsluiting nu ( twee toegangsdeuren voor 148 woningen met
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lift) is beter dan de vorige ontsluiting (portiek met één toegangsdeur op 8 tot 12 woningen zonder lift” zijn de meningen verdeeld. Daarover is 53% het eens en geeft aan dat de lift een verbetering is: voornamelijk voor moeders met kleine kinderen en ouderen. De 47% die het oneens is met de stelling geeft aan dat in de nieuwe situatie minder sociale controle is en dat er nu makkelijker ongewenste/ onbekende mensen binnenkomen. De oude situatie was overzichtelijker. Het antwoord op de tweede stelling “in mijn woonsituatie zijn er relatief ‘grote’ groepen jongeren die zich vervelen en zich wenden tot bijvoorbeeld vandalisme” geeft een meer eenduidig beeld. Van de respondenten geeft 82% aan dat zij het eens zijn met de stelling Er wordt namelijk te weinig gedaan voor de jongeren. De respondenten die het niet eens zijn met de stelling geven aan dat jongeren uit de eigen buurt niet hun eigen flat zouden ‘slopen’ en dat bewoners te snel denken dat jongeren ‘het’ gedaan hebben. De flat heeft een jongerencommissie en die geven het goede voorbeeld volgens deze respondenten. Een jeugdhonk en camera’s worden als oplossing gegeven voor de problemen die genoemd worden bij de stellingen. Een jeugdhonk als oplossing voor de jongeren, zodat zij zich daar bezig kunnen houden. De camera’s worden samen genoemd met compartimentering. Momenteel is het mogelijk vanuit de centrale hal (er zijn 2 centrale hallen) alle woningen te bereiken. Door middel van camera’s kan gekeken worden wie er binnenkomen en door middel van de compartimentering is het niet meer mogelijke alle woningen te bereiken. Tegelijkertijd kan er toezicht gehouden worden op de ondergrondse parkeergarage. De respondenten geven overigens wel aan tevreden te zijn met de aanpak van de complexbeheerder betreffende bovenstaande problemen. Woonkosten Naast deze bovenstaande ontwikkelingen heeft er een verandering plaatsgevonden in de woonkosten. Het totale plaatje wat betreft de huren bedroeg in de oude situatie ongeveer 300-375 € (inclusief stookkosten en de servicekosten), nu is dat rond de 600-650 € (inclusief servicekosten en stookkosten). Dit is een verdubbeling van de woonlasten. Over deze financiële verandering
doen respondenten zowel positieve als negatieve uitspraken. Zo is een respondent wel bereid te betalen voor de lift en vindt een ander dat de prijskwaliteit verhouding prima is. ‘Meer moeten betalen dan verwacht’ is de reactie van een andere respondent en weer een andere respondent geeft aan meer begeleiding rond de financiën gehad te willen hebben. Eén respondent geeft ook aan dat andere bewoners van de vorige buurt moesten kiezen voor een andere buurt vanwege de stijging van de woonuitgaven en dat ‘hij zelf niks meer overhoudt per maand’. Proces stedelijke vernieuwing Naast deze resultaten hadden de respondenten een aantal interessante uitspraken gemaakt over de het proces van de stedelijke vernieuwing (de hele situatie): - Als de wijk af is (stedelijke vernieuwing), dan ziet alles er anders uit. (beter, completer) - Mijn uitzicht is enorm verbeterd! - Geen ruimte voor ouderen en jongeren! - Zonder de complexbeheerder zou het hier een zooitje zijn. - De respondent heeft er spijt van hier te komen wonen. - Het is geen tuinstad meer! - Mensen hadden andere verwachtingen, dan wat nu is waar gemaakt. - Flatleven: je bent erg anoniem. Woning Het thema woning betreft alle fysieke aspecten binnen de woning. In de oude situatie geven de respondenten aan tevreden te zijn met de balkon(s) .De respondenten geven aan ontevreden te zijn met de isolatie van de woningen. De respondenten hadden toen last van tocht, vocht en kou. Verder oordelen ze niet positief of negatief over de oude woning. Op het thema van de woning scoort de nieuwe situatie een stuk beter dan de oude situatie. Bijna alle respondenten noemen de woning ruim/ groot en warm/goed geïsoleerd. Minpunten van de nieuwe situatie zijn het balkon en de keuken. Een aantal respondenten zijn ontevreden over de oriëntatie, afwerking of veiligheid en een aantal respondenten heeft geen balkon. De keuken is volgens de respondenten ook een minpunt, deze is vaak te klein of verkeerd geplaatst of beiden.
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Leefbaarheid De leefbaarheid heeft volgens de bewoners een behoorlijke verandering ondergaan. Het thema leefbaarheid gaat over sociale aspecten van de wijk. Met betrekking tot de oude situatie geven de respondenten aan tevreden te zijn met de bereikbaarheid van de voorzieningen en de woning (met de auto). Verder hadden ze geen last van parkeeroverlast, jongeren of het verkeer. De sociale controle was goed volgens de respondenten. Men had veel contact met de buren, daarnaast voelde de meeste respondenten zich (altijd) veilig in de oude situatie. In de nieuwe situatie hebben de respondenten last van parkeeroverlast, rommel op straat en criminaliteit. Respondenten ondervinden geen buren- en geluidsoverlast, maar hebben wel last van hangjongeren, mede hierdoor hebben de bewoners een gevoel van mindere sociale veiligheid. In afbeelding 12 is een overzicht te zien van de gestelde vragen en de resultaten van de interviews.
Conclusies We concluderen dat de respondenten minder tevreden zijn over de leefbaarheid en de openbare ruimte in de nieuwe situatie. De respondenten geven namelijk aan dat ze minder tevreden zijn over de rommel op straat en dat ze meer last hebben van parkeeroverlast. De openbare ruimte is in waardering gezakt vanwege de groen, speel –en parkeervoorzieningen. Over de woning kan geconcludeerd worden dat het een verbetering is ten opzichte van de oude situatie. Vooral de grootte van de woning en de kamers vinden de respondenten een verbetering. De waardering over de woonlasten laten tussen de beide situaties geen grote verschillen zien: de tevredenheid over prijs/kwaliteit verhouding is ongeveer gelijk. Wat betreft de ontsluiting kan geconcludeerd worden dat er een lichte voorkeur is voor de nieuwe situatie, de lift is hierin een belangrijk aspect. Uit het commentaar op de open vragen kan geconcludeerd worden dat conclusie van de thema’s wordt bevestigd. Daarnaast kan uit het commentaar worden aangenomen dat het
veiligheidsgevoel is verminderd. Het uiterlijk van de openbare ruimte en de isolatie van de woningen (geluid en warmte) wordt wel als een duidelijke verbetering ervaren. Al deze waarnemingen komen samen in de conclusie dat de respondenten minder tevreden zijn in de nieuwe situatie, wat aangeeft dat de stedelijke vernieuwing geen onverdeeld succes is. De stedelijke vernieuwing is niet geslaagd door veiligheid en de speel-, groenen parkeervoorzieningen. Hierbij moet in achtgenomen worden dat de stedelijke vernieuwing nog niet af is. De factor tijd zal nog een invloed hebben op de speel- en groenvoorzieningen. Als de stedelijke vernieuwing af is zal de mening van de respondenten over deze voorzieningen kunnen veranderen. Daarnaast zijn er nog andere aspecten die zullen veranderen zoals de buurtvoorzieningen en de bereikbaarheid, (bij het afmaken van de weg) al deze veranderingen kunnen de gehele mening van de respondenten (positief) veranderen. In een dergelijk stedelijk vernieuwingsproces zouden de oplevering van de woningen beter op die van de voorzieningen moeten worden afgestemd.
1. Paul Stouten, Duurzaamheid van de Stadsvernieuwing, 2004, Delft (pag. 23) 2. http://www.slotervaart.amsterdam.nl juni 2007 3. Paul Stouten, Duurzaamheid van de Stadsvernieuwing, 2004, Delft (pag. 140) 4. Beleidsregels voor het Inversteringsbudget Stedelijke vernieuwing (ISV), periode 2005-2009 voor de ISV-projectgemeenten Provincie Limburg, april 2005 5. Paul Stouten, Duurzaamheid van de Stadsvernieuwing, 2004, Delft (pag. 28) 6. Bureau Parkstad, Richting Parkstad 2015. December 2004. (Ontwikkelingsplan voor de vernieuwing van Amsterdam Nieuw West), pag. 34 en 35. 7. Gemeente Amsterdam, Dienst Wonen/ projectteam ISV-MOP II, Concept Meerjaren Ontwikkelingsprogramma Amsterdam 2005-2009, oktober 2004 8. Ineke Teijmant, (serie) Verdwijnende buurten, Meer en Vaart 1958-2005, Algemene Woningbouw Vereniging en Properstok, Amsterdam 2004 9. Algemene Woningbouw Vereniging, Bewonersinformatie Het Bastion, april 2007/RvdZ 10.Stadsdeel Osdorp, Prospect Amsterdam en Proper-stok Uitwerkingsplan Meer en Oever, Amsterdam, Augustus 2003
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Call for Submissions Atlantis 19.3
Urbanism is a determining factor in the way we shape our society, being a tangible aspect of our daily lives. We are all in constant contact with our planned surroundings, projected spaces and realized networks. This means our cities, spaces and networks are influenced by inherent trends that are present in the timeframe we live in. To look at the way different ISMS have influenced town planning in a historical perspective will be much like opening a dusty history book; certainly an interesting subject, but lacking the present day debate we are looking for. Being on the forefront of today’s defining ISMS means having a close look at which trends are influencing our interpretation of urbanism and how these are being manifested in a concrete way. To remain close to our yearly theme “ISMS in Urbanism: ideologies in the city” we have narrowed down our search to three interesting trends we see implemented around us today. The first is Traditionalism, dealing on the one hand with the continuation of proven methods and ideas but placed in a modern-day context, on the other hand with representation of historical urbanist approaches from the past placed in today’s surroundings. The second trend we will deal with is Escapism, or the creation of large leisure ‘hubs’ outside our cities. Fleeing our urban surroundings to visit theme parks, sunor snow resorts or shopping and entertainment malls is an activity we almost do on a daily basis, so how do urban designers and planners face these developments? The last aspect we would like to look at is how our cities, founded and developed under a Christian and Western influence are dealing with new approaches and ideas from the Islamic culture and the Middle-East. By calling this Utopism, we would like to refer to the urbanist vision the respective religions have of their ideal city. Is it a matter of embracing this influence into our cities or do we need to take a stand and preserve our cultural roots? A very hot topic in today’s social debate, how does this translate to our urbanism practice? For our next issue we are looking for people interested in writing an article dealing with one or more of these modern day trends we have distinguished. In support of this issue, Polis is organizing lectures, excursions and debates in the spring, creating a multi-faceted approach to the theme. We would like you to participate in the written word to create an issue which will give background information for those not familiar with the topics and spark debate for those who will actively participate in our activities.
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Atlantis Magazine for urbanism, a publication from POLIS, podium for urbanism, published 4 times a year. 19th year, number 2, April 2008 quantity: 500 issues
Main Editor Cristina Ampatzidou Editors Edoardo Felici Sander Scholte Katerina Chrysanthopoulou Thomas de Bos Adress of the Editorial Office POLIS
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Cover: Olafur Eliasson, The cubic structural evolution project, 2004 Layout: Cristina Ampatzidou © 2008 Polis, Podium voor Stedebouwkunde ISSN 1387-3679