Noorderbaken Hoogvliet Rotterdam • 2003 - 2006
Apartment building with 117 dwellings and a parking garage
Client: Woonbron Maasoevers, Hoogvliet

The Noorderbaken apartment block forms the north-west cornerstone – beacon - of the urban plan for the Oedevlietse Park in Hoogvliet. The site is situated at the point where the high Oude Maas dike meets the embankment that forms the slip road to the Spijkenisse Bridge. The proximity of the riverbank park along the Oude Maas and the many high trees give the location a green character.

The line of the apartment block runs parallel to the Groene Kruisweg. It is divided into three sections that differ in height. The variance in height qualifies the massiveness of the building and gives it sculptural allure. The north façade has a pattern of storey-high coloured panels, alternating with glass fronts. On the south side, the façade is more open and its general appearance is determined by the horizontal lines of the balconies with glass parapets and the living-space fronts. The strong horizontal lines are interrupted by a number of double-height exterior areas belonging to the maisonettes of the building and by a deluge of coarse tree trunks that have been placed in front of the balconies. With the addition of these tree trunks, the building refers to the forested character that the location once had.

To make the building into a visual unit despite the variations in height, the south and the north façades have both been framed with black slates. The façade of the substructure of the apartment block consists of narrow concrete sections, alternating with windows and panels, behind which the various functions are gathered in a composed manner. The concrete elements have been continued around the car park and the roof garden, thus forming a transparent façade.

The project comprises 117 rented and owner-occupied apartments that are accessed via three double-height entrance halls. On the south side, a roof garden that the residents can access from the entrance halls has been installed above the car park.