The integrated renewal of Amsterdam’s Bijlmermeer high-rise

Journal article (2010)

Authors

Faculty
OTB Research Institute (OTB Research Institute) (TU Delft)
Copyright: © 2010 Wassenberg, F.
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Published Date

08-12-2010

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Source:

Informationen zur Raumentwicklung, Heft 3/4, 2006, pp. 191-201

Faculty

OTB Research Institute

Abstract

In recent years, there has been a growing interest all over the world in improving the large housing estates of the 1960s and 1970s. Highrise estates are associated with problematic living conditions, deprived areas, isolated locations, a poor population, a negative image, social isolation, pollution and crime. In short: they are not the most popular areas in town. One of the finest and most well-known examples is the Bijlmermeer high-rise, located in the south-east extension of Amsterdam (the Netherlands). Over the years there has been only one thing constant in this area: the ongoing call for change. In the beginning, in the 1960s, the area was promoted as the most modern place to live, with its daring and innovative design influenced by the ideas of the CIAM-movement (“Congrès Internationaux d’Architecture Moderne”). Later on, the area became well known for its numerous problems. The media found it easy to report time after time about disappointed residents, pollution, drugs, crime and other misery. Since the 1980s, the Bijlmermeer has continuously received attention because of a wide range of innovative measures and promising experiments to improve the living conditions. Nowadays, the Bijlmermeer is in the limelight because of an integral, very radical solution. This paper reports on the approaches used to improve this famous high-rise estate over the last 30 years. We distinguish several phases: upgrading the environment, improving the management, fighting crime and safety, setting up participation projects and formulating integral approaches. The last phase results in demolition on a large scale. The Bijlmermeer is renewing its own future and stands out as the leading example of Dutch renewal policy, not only because of the size of the operation, but primarily because of its integral approach. Without doubt the solutions and experiences in the Bijlmermeer provide ideas and useful knowledge for many other problematic large-scale housing estates.