City making on the basis of strength rather than power

Werkplaats Europan consists of five market parties that provide a follow-up to the competition stage of Europan 15. The result is a quite unique collaboration between young designers, the city, market parties, housing associations and other inspired city makers. Paul Becht: ‘This follow-up project offers opportunities to develop alternative ways of tackling challenges on the basis of a commitment to the city, rather than of interests or fundamental positions.’

Open Process

Michelle Corbeau: ‘In Werkplaats Europan, market parties are not diametrically opposed, like in tendering processes, but work alongside each other. Europan also gives us the opportunity to enter into dialogue with a city that approaches us openly. When we, as developers, come into contact with local authorities from a set position, the dialogue is much less open. This new situation allows us, together with designers and the city, to take more time to reflect on the larger context of the areas and to make use of each other’s knowledge. No-one is keeping anything close to their chest; there are no secret agendas here.’ Or, as Christiaan Cooiman summarises: ‘Making city together on the basis of strength rather than power.’

Looking beyond the site’s boundaries

Stefan van Gurp: ‘This method also provides opportunities to make progress faster. You don’t have to go through a lengthy tendering process. A site like Vierhavensblok benefits from speedy intervention. Numerous parties are already involved in the area. The landscape architects, architects, artists and companies that are established in Vierhavensblok and show commitment are all desperate for progress. You want to seize the moment and apply that energy. In a lengthy tendering process, there’s a chance that some party will step in that is blind to things that are already happening or going on – perhaps by necessity, because the tendering format doesn’t allow anyone to look beyond the boundaries of the site. If you join forces with partners in an area that is larger than a single development plot, you’re in a much better position to think about a social programme together.’

Corbeau: ‘This way, you can prevent situations in which developers look at their neighbours at work on neighbouring sites and think: “Let them solve the social issues.” In the normal course of events, if we put issues on the agenda that involve challenges beyond those of the single development plot, the city will put on the brakes, because their budget doesn’t stretch that far.’

Space for new ideas

Corbeau: ‘Werkplaats Europan offers the city an accessible way to keep working with young designers. Through tendering, you can at best stipulate that a party has to work with the winner, but in that case the winner doesn’t have a commission.’ 

Cooiman: ‘It’s important for young players to stay involved. If you never actively look for innovative proposals, you keep repeating what you already know. Only a few market parties are really interested in new ideas. That’s why the buildings in our cities look so similar.’ 

‘The ideas of young talents are fresh because they start with a dream. They’re not held back by the direct focus on affordability that developers often have,’ says Corbeau. 

Werkplaats Europan offers opportunities for designers to enter into alliances as well.

Edward van Dongen: ‘The Barcelona designers that designed Hybrid Parliament for the Kop Dakpark site entered into an alliance with the winner of the Visserijplein site. Alliances of this kind are very important, not only because they’re an important way for young designers to extend their international network, but also because they allow them to share their ideas about the various locations in context.’

Qualitative approach

So far, Werkplaats Europan facilitates an unselfish and claim-free collaboration. But at some point the sites will actually have to be developed. Becht: ‘At that time, too, you’ll want to continue working with each other on the basis of commitment. Just like in a relationship. From the conviction that this will make it easier to realize the desired qualities.’ 

Corbeau: ‘Tendering processes don’t always result in the best possible plans, because financial aspects often tilt the scales. Tendering on the basis of quality is often difficult for cities, because they consider it risky.’ 

Becht: ‘But working together on the basis of content is important, since there are quite a few issues in the city that call for a qualitative approach. The challenge of providing affordable dwellings in the middle segment in combination with the creation of liveable neighbourhoods, for one. In the future, will we be living in communities in which we share many things, or are we going to build flats in which only the lift shaft is shared?’

Rotterdam’s building culture

When asked whether the collaborative method of Werkplaats Europan creates extra opportunities in a city that already emphatically presents itself using the motto ‘making city together’, the partners are in some doubt. Private-public and collaborative developments are also taking place elsewhere in the Netherlands. 

Corbeau: ‘But the typical Rotterdam culture of “don’t just talk the talk but walk the walk” and open-mindedness may help it to succeed more quickly here. In general, parties in Rotterdam don’t have double agendas. If it’s “yes” today it’ll still be “yes” tomorrow.’

Paul Becht is a regional manager of the BPD Gebiedsontwikkeling Regio Zuid-West, Christaan Cooiman is a commercial regional manager at Heijmans Vastgoed, Michelle Corbeau is a senior development manager at AM Regio Zuidwest, Edward van Dongen is the head of initiative & concept / concept developer at ERA Contour B.V. and Stefan van Gurp is a senior project developer at Dudok Groep.