Chicago housing block
The narrow strip between the eastern bank of the IJ, the railway embankment and the Piet Hein Kade was part of the redevelopment of the Eastern Docklands by the Spatial Planning Department (DRO) in the 1990s.
Within the concept of a “train of buildings”, formed by a linked series of compartments, part of the old warehouses had to be preserved and integrated into the planning. The DRO formulated several preconditions for this area. The most important elements were: the wall, a continuous strip of buildings on the north side; the objects, a series of taller structures on the south side; and a plinth, upon which the wall and objects within each compartment were to be situated.
Rapp+Rapp was responsible for the masterplan for one of these compartments, in which an extremely high building density had to be achieved for Amsterdam. Inspired by New York’s Zoning Law, guidelines and preconditions were formulated regarding daylight access, the formation of compact building masses, and the intended robust character that was to complement the former harbour area. In line with the three old warehouses — Amerika, Australië and Wilhelmina, of which Wilhelmina and Australië were partially retained — the block was divided into three plots.
Integrating the old and new buildings became one of the key themes in the design. Rapp+Rapp was responsible for the Chicago building, which adjoins the Wilhelmina warehouse. One of the most complex challenges in designing Chicago was the intention to make the new building form a visual whole with the Wilhelmina warehouse, while the warehouse lay outside the planning area and had to continue to function independently.
To ensure that the warehouse remains visible from the south, the dwellings have been arranged compactly within the limited footprint, with part of the new development built above the warehouse without the buildings physically touching one another. The U-shaped block has been positioned at a minimum distance against the south side of the existing Wilhelmina warehouse. From the gutter, the new building projects out over the warehouse, again at a minimal distance, closely following the sloping roofline. On the north side, above the ridge of the warehouse, the block is closed by steel walkways that connect to the galleries in the inner courtyard.
The main entrances to the apartments are situated on either side of the two-storey gateway on the south side. The apartments are accessed via galleries on the courtyard side. The glass interior of the building courtyard is characterised by openness and transparency, contrasting with the external façade. Office spaces are located on the ground and first floors.
The façades feature a classical structure, with horizontal concrete beams and vertical French balcony doors that open inwards. The brick, with its rich colour variation due to the natural production process, gives the building a robust appearance. Its combination with natural wooden window frames is in keeping with the harbour character of the area.
The articulation and colour, the use of materials and the way in which the new building envelops the old warehouse allow both structures to visually merge into a single entity while remaining architecturally separate. The section built above the warehouse roof rests on four steel cantilevers anchored over a height of two storeys into a one-metre-thick concrete structure. Due to its contrasting materials and design, this supporting structure is clearly visible within the main building mass.
