Kavel 6, De Stoomkracht

Kavel 6 is an urban ensemble of social rental housing consisting of 170 studios for young people and 30 apartments for seniors. It is part of the extensive urban transformation of the former industrial area Oostenburgereiland into a new residential district with approximately 1500 homes in Amsterdam.

The design of the ensemble responds to the centrally located Oostenburgermiddenstraat, all buildings of Kavel 6 face this street. The residential tower serves as a landmark visible from the railway on the north side of the ensemble. On the south side, adjacent to the parking building and opposite the INIT building (housing newspaper De Volkskrant and the municipal cleaning service), the ensemble corresponds to the large and robust scale of these constructions.

The distinct character of Kavel 6 is created by the communal courtyard, accessible to all residents. A green oasis of tranquility and interaction for the residents amidst the city’s hustle and bustle. The garden is situated on two levels, each with its own character and planting plan: a shaded garden with trees planted directly in the ground, and a sunny garden on the roof of a logistics corridor traversing the lot. The levels of the courtyard are connected by a spacious staircase adorned with planters, integrating the staircase into the garden.

By incorporating the wall vegetation of the adjacent parking building into the courtyard design, biodiversity, ambiance, and acoustics in the heart of the lot are enhanced, and, like the garden’s planting plan, the changing seasons are made tangible.

The facade of the staircase and the corridor is clad in a matte reflective paneling, creating an optical illusion of spaciousness in the relatively small garden and maximizing the reflection of light within the garden.

The building for the senior housing, named ‘De Stoomkracht’, with a width of 10.5 meters, is divided into two building sections in both function and materialization, thereby further enhancing the urban design principle of the Oostenburgermiddenstraat with a big variation and contrast between buildings.

One section, 3 meters wide, serves as a spacious entrance, vertical circulation, outdoor space, and meeting place for the residents. This section has an industrial appearance and is finished with a ‘mesh’ as a fall protection, which will be covered with ivy and vine on the garden side, blending it with the vegetation of the courtyard.

The other section, located at the corner of the ensemble, houses an open workspace on the ground floor and 30 apartments for seniors on the upper floors, constructed with black modular brickwork. The large square window openings stagger relative to each other within the strict square grid of the bricks, creating an architectural interplay between the regularities of the grid and the collective and the desire to express the individual.

The compact apartments (with a floor area of 40m2) have a smart layout that is user-friendly for seniors who may experience limited mobility in the future. A core containing a bathroom, toilet, storage, and installations is the central element of the dwelling around which the resident can move freely. The core allows for both a flexible layout and a clear separation with the private domain, without compromising the functionality and spatiality of the apartment.