HISTORY of ARCHITECTURE ASSESSMENT -1

By T R Radhakrishnan

(2014701544)

ANS 4)

CITY OF ALMERE

The very birth of Almere demonstrates its innovative character as a city. At the outset of the 20th century, Almere’s present territory was just

a patch of water in the Zuiderzee. Starting in 1932, the majority of the Zuiderzee was closed off from the North Sea and the salt-water inlet

changed into a fresh-water lake; the IJsselmeer. In 1975 Almere’s first inhabitants – real pioneers – took up residence on the newly reclaimed

land. Since then, Almere has been a city where innovations can thrive, which is essentially what the new town character of Almere is all about.

The original plans for the IJsselmeerpolders saw the land being used for agriculture. However, after World War II housing was needed for the

rapidly growing population of Amsterdam and two towns were planned in the polders Oostelijk Flevoland and Zuidelijk Flevoland. The town

in Oostelijk Flevoland became Lelystad. The town in Zuidelijk Flevoland was still called Zuidweststad (English: South West City) on the first

sketches, but in the 1970s it became called Almere, named after the lake Almere, the early medieval name of the Zuiderzee. The first house

in Almere was finished in 1976. At that time the town was still controlled by the Openbaar Lichaam Zuidelijke IJsselmeerpolders (Z.IJ.P.), with

a Landdrost. In 1984 Almere became an official municipality. Originally, Almere was envisioned as a town with multiple centres. This idea was

later abandoned in favor of allowing neighbourhoods like Tussen de Vaarten to be built. There is also a difference between the way houses

are built in the oldest and the newest parts of the city. The housing plan in Almere in the 1970s was basic functionality and a levelling of social

status. However, starting in the 1990s more exclusive homes with striking designs were built (e.g., in the Regenboogbuurt).

The expansion of the city – the road to urban adulthood - continues apace. One of the main objectives of the city’s spatial planning agenda is

to provide an integrated solution for environmental consideration, while at the same time attaining optimal levels of quality of life, comfort

and social, economical and cultural values.

Almere Haven was the first nucleus to be built. The first pile (of what would later become a telephone exchange centre) was driven in 1974.

On December 1st 1975, the city’s first 24 pioneers (thirteen adults and nine children) were handed the keys to their temporary homes by

public administrator Will Marie Otto. A year later, the first brick houses were completed.

Reflecting urban development thinking of the time, Almere Haven is characterized by its maze of so-called “cauliflower neighbourhoods”.

Playful street patterns full of culs-de-sac were designed to encourage social contact.

In 1979 the first housing projects in Almere Stad were completed and in the 1980s the third nucleus – Almere Buiten – was initiated. In 1984

Almere became an official municipality, with Han Lammers (a former local administrator) as its first mayor. Since January 1st 1986, the three

Zuiderzee polders together officially constitute the twelfth province of the Netherlands: Flevoland.
 Currently, Almere is a city with over 195,000 inhabitants and 14,500 businesses. Two more urban nuclei (Almere Poort and Almere Hout) are

in development, with several more in the planning stages. Almere is one of the fastest growing cities in Europe and has the ambition to

become the fifth largest city (where it is currently the seventh largest city) in the Netherlands over the next twenty years.

To inspire everyone contributing to the future of the city, the Almere Principles were defined in concurrence with international sustainability
expert William McDonough.

1. Cultivate diversity
To enrich the city, we acknowledge diversity as a defining characteristic of robust ecological, social and economic systems. By appraising and
stimulating diversity in all areas, we can ensure Almere will continue to grow and thrive as a city rich in variety.

2. Connect place and context

To connect the city we will strengthen and enhance its identity. Based on its own strength and on mutual benefit, the city will maintain
active relationships with its surrounding communities at large.

3. Combine city and nature

To give meaning to the city we will consciously aim to bring about unique and lasting combinations of the urban and natural fabric, and raise
awareness of human interconnectedness with nature.

4. Anticipate change
To honor the evolution of the city we will incorporate generous flexibility and adaptability in our plans and programs, in order to facilitate
unpredictable opportunities for future generations.

5. Continue innovation
To advance the city we will encourage improved processes, technologies and infrastructures, and we will support experimentation and the
exchange of knowledge.

6. Design healthy systems

We will utilize ‘cradle to cradle’ solutions, recognizing the interdependence, at all scales, of ecological, social and economic health.

Empower people to make the city

Acknowledging citizens to be the driving force in creating, ke

eping and sustaining the city, we facilitate them in pursuing their unique potential
 CITY OF AMSTERDAM

All cities have a unique story to tell about their spatial history. So does Amsterdam. The layout of the inner city canal ring was even inscribed on

the World Heritage List by Unesco in 2010. Lately, I have been doing some research into the Dutch world heritage sites - most of the sites

have to do with land design, water engineering and planning - which inspired me to look at Amsterdam’s old and new urban patterns with

fresh eyes. Here is a little visual history of the city’s planning.

Above is one of the oldest known painted or mapped cityscapes of Amsterdam, by Cornelisz Antonisz from 1538. The map is basically upside
down, with Amsterdam (that evolved from a late 12th century fishing settlement) looked at from the North. The dam in the centre is now Dam
Square. The city is walled (on the left side at Zeedijk and on the right at Singel). The pattern of the old city is still intact, with some of the
waterways now paved.
The first big extension plan was formed in the first decade of the 17th century. Because the city was literally full after the Golden Age started,
it was decided to build a canal ring around the old city and move the defence wall outward (over 1km eastwards and almost 1km to the west).
The canal ring was built in two phases, one starting in 1610 and one starting in 1660.

The first extension of the canal ring (from Brouwersgracht in the west to Leidsegracht) was a huge relief to the city, releasing the pressure on

its land. It was filled up quickly with some of the richest Europeans migrating to one of the classy canals. The second extension (completing

the concentric half to the east) was finished by the time the city’s immense prosperity had already started to decrease. It took almost two

centuries (until around 1900) before all plots laid out were built on. De Jordaan was also part of the first canal ring extension. It was a planned

segregation, with the three canals built for the rich (especially Heren- and Keizersgracht), and the Jordaan area built for the poorer workers

and industries.

The city’s economy only really started growing again in the second half of the 19th century. That is when plans for expansion were made again.

The first residential bit outside of the canal 17th century extension was built in 1870 (as part of an 1866 plan than never was executed except

for this part, because it turned out to be too expensive). This was the northern part of the current De Pijp area. The city expanded

concentrically in these years after, according to the 1876 Plan-Kalff. After WWII, several big urban plans have been realized. Much of it, realized

between 1951 and 1966 was the execution of the General Extension Plan of 1935. Most of these developments are based on early modernist

ideals.
ANS 7)

ING BANK by ALBERT and HUUT

The ten towers of the ING Bank HQ have a total of 43 working floors. The energy concept has a high economical energy result. Appreciation
of the building both by the people working in it and its visitors, is also determined buy the use of colour and art. The building was predestined
to be one of the lowest energy consumption buildings in the world in 1987.
The building attracts attention because of its form, architecture, interior and garden design.
Inside
In each tower the daylight enters through a dome and illuminates voids (glass-roofed stairwells), giving a lively appearance to the indoor
walkway linking the towers. The central facilities such as reception, four restaurants, snack bar, post room, library, film theatre, PR centre,
and conference rooms are located on this indoor walkway.
The use of plants makes the indoor walkway a much more pleasant link between working areas than the long corridors one generally finds in
large buildings. Besides lifts, recognisable by the use of striking colours, the staircases have been centrally installed in the towers so they invite
the use of it, rather than taking the lift.
Outside
The building’s appearance is determined by ten towers of varying heights, whose walls are slightly sloping. There is hardly any wall that is
vertical. Together the towers form a capricious ‘S’, and consequently few offices face the public road. In addition, the sloping walls reflect
noise upwards to reduce noise nuisance. The ten towers are three to six storeys high. The relatively large external wall surface is made up
nearly entirely of prefabricated concrete units, clad with handmade bricks. A quarter of the façade is formed by the windows, creating a
favourable balance between heat loss and the admission of daylight.
Gardens
The design of the roof garden on the parking for the ING headquarters is +/- 6.700 m2 and was made in collaboration with Jørn Copijn, Garden
and Landscape Architect. The building has an English Garden, a Finnish garden and a Japanese garden on top of the parking garage (which is
partly underground). There are many trees, waterfalls, bushes and lots of flowers, creating a natural environment for the people who work
there. This project no longer considered as a passive system, but as an organism that interacts with man and the environment.