Transformation of the Julianakerk into JUUL
Nine years after the devastating fire in the Julianakerk, residential project JUUL has been completed in Rotterdam. HA-HA Design & Development transformed the remains of the church into four homes, bringing new life to a site that had stood damaged for years in the Rotterdam garden city of Heijplaat.
Acting as both architect and developer, HA-HA managed the entire process in-house: from design and development through to realisation. Rather than reconstructing the past, the project takes what remained as its point of departure. The original church walls and foundations became part of a new residential ensemble in which heritage, architecture and landscape are conceived as a single whole.
With the return of its characteristic spire, Heijplaat has also regained an important part of its historic skyline. JUUL adds a new layer to the history of the Julianakerk while restoring the garden village’s third church tower.
The Julianakerk was built in 1930 in Heijplaat, the Rotterdam garden village developed from 1914 onwards for workers of the Rotterdamsche Droogdok Maatschappij (RDM), the Rotterdam Dry Dock Company. Together with the other churches, the building formed an important part of the neighbourhood’s urban ensemble. The three church towers aligned in sequence became a recognisable feature of Heijplaat.
In 2017, the Julianakerk was struck by a devastating fire. Architect Nima Morkoç, who had purchased the building, lost not only a large part of the church but also his personal belongings and those of friends and family.
Rather than abandoning the site, the fire became the starting point for a new design and development. Everything that could be preserved from the church was carefully retained and incorporated into the new design.
Design Vision
HA-HA approached the project through an integrated design vision in which landscape, urbanism, architecture and interior are considered as one. JUUL is conceived as a contemporary continuation of Heijplaat’s religious and industrial heritage. The original church has not been reconstructed as a historic image. Instead, it provides the foundation for a new form of social monumentality: no longer centred around religion, but around living and community.
Old and new remain deliberately distinguishable. The existing brick church walls, foundations and historic elements sit alongside a lightweight, contemporary architecture. At the same time, both are carefully connected through material, scale and form.
Four homes have been inserted within and between the remains of the former church. The reinstated spire restores Heijplaat’s historic skyline and gives JUUL a recognisable position within the garden village once again.
Structure & Materials
A distinctive aspect of JUUL is its structural solution. The original Julianakerk has a shallow foundation with no poles, a relatively uncommon foundation method in Rotterdam. Rather than introducing a new foundation system, the church’s existing foundations have been fully reused to support the four new homes.
The choice of a lightweight timber structure was essential to this approach. Because the new construction weighs considerably less than the former church building, the homes could be realised within the structural capacity of the existing foundations. As a result, not a single new foundation pole had to be driven for JUUL, allowing the historic base of the church to remain intact.
Behind this seemingly simple intervention was an intensive process of engineering and collaboration between architect, structural engineer and contractors. JUUL demonstrates how timber construction can be more than a sustainable material choice: its low weight creates new possibilities for the transformation and reuse of existing buildings, making it possible to build upon what is already there.
Landscape & Memory
The landscape also acts as a carrier of the site’s history. Planting beds extend from within the former church towards the exterior, connecting the homes, courtyard and historic church walls. In this way, landscape becomes an integral part of the architecture.
Within the walls of the former church, the planting also carries a symbolic meaning. In autumn, the vegetation turns red — a subtle reference to the fire from which JUUL emerged.
The history of the site is therefore neither erased nor literally reconstructed, but remains legible in different ways. This applies not only to the new residents, but also to neighbours who hold memories of and a personal connection to the Julianakerk.
Sustainability & Reuse
The preservation of the existing church walls and foundations formed the starting point for the development. Rather than demolition and complete reconstruction, the project makes maximum use of what was already present.
The combination of a lightweight timber structure, reuse of the original foundations, solar panels and bio-based materials such as bamboo reduces the material and environmental impact of the new construction. At the same time, JUUL demonstrates that the sustainable transformation of heritage extends beyond technical performance. By introducing housing and community within the former church, both the spatial and social significance of the monument are carried forward.
Development & Significance
JUUL was both designed and developed by HA-HA, bringing architecture, landscape and development together within a single project.
The symbolic start of construction took place with the participation of Rotterdam alderwoman Chantal Zeegers. During construction, the Julianakerk was also granted municipal monument status. The recognition was presented by Rotterdam mayor Carola Schouten, formally acknowledging the cultural-historical significance of the site.
Nine years after the fire, JUUL gives the former Julianakerk a new future. Four homes, historic remains, landscape and the reinstated spire together form a new layer in the history of Heijplaat: distinctly Rotterdam, sustainably built and visibly rooted in what was already there.
