Since the neoliberal implementation in the government plans of Rotterdam in 1987, the vision of the city changed quite radically. A decade before the change, the city rejected high-rise buildings. But since this new vision, called ‘Nieuw Rotterdam’, got approved, Rotterdam implemented a high-rise vision which made the city as it is today; defined by a modern character and full of high-rise buildings, at least for Dutch standards. Yet, this high-rise implementation is only a small attribution of the conducted vision that was established in the late previous century. Neoliberal implementation goes further than merely implementing American-like high-rise buildings. It concerns the economics; particularly the liberation of the market and the multinational business trend that defines the contemporary economical appearances of both city and country. Since the drastic changes in city vision, Rotterdam opened up its borders and adopted a desire for foreign business, to upgrade their economical game and compete against the economic prosperity of other cities. Rotterdam therefore changed quite radically since Nieuw Rotterdam was practically implemented. Its buildings grew, its habitants grew and it became a popular place for tourists. In the Netherlands, Rotterdam is known today for their rich modern architecture and its modern appearance. However, the aspect of business, is less thriving. While it started to aim at welcoming more foreign business about thirty years ago, Rotterdam today is still struggling to find and welcome foreign companies and multinational business into its city. One of the primary reasons for this, is that both the city centre and its economical heart of the RCD, lacks an economical identity. Rotterdam did have its identity of the industry and the port, yet the neoliberal growth and privatization of those instances led to the translocation outside the city centre. In addition to this, the economic sector of industry became less favourable, since the tertiary sector of a business service economy predominates a neoliberal oriented city. The project of the Vertical High Tech Campus explores the promising economical sector of high tech in combination with its research and business aspects in an urban environment as a step towards providing a new economic identity for the city of Rotterdam.

The Bank of Maas is a project which explores the changes in the urban fabric of Rotterdam, occurring as a result of technological developments. The project reflects on these developments, and utilizes them in order to create a condition for urban production to take place. The Bank of Maas is a project which provides Rotterdam with the productive resources necessary to the functioning of a modern-day city. It does that by creating spaces for production and storage, supported by smart production tools and an innovative storage technology. The project explores the relationship between the industry 4.0. ( production based on automation and smart technologies) and dense urban environments. By bringing production back into the inner city, the Bank aims to consolidate industry 4.0 with local skilled labor and local raw materials. The project of the Bank of Maas is an experiment, imagining a future in which cities exist as productive, well connected bodies in itself, facilitated with a network of productive resource banks.

The fascination started with the idea that a street is a gettering place for everyone. It is an open space where everybody can come and where people can meet and interact with each other. But is the street designed as a place for interaction? Or is it intended to get from one place to the other? Is the street a logistical way of working, to structure the city and the flow of people? Research has been done about the street, what is a street, and how do we experience a street? To create a better understanding of how streets are designed different street typologies around the world are analyzed. The exciting part about the streets is that they are everywhere, they already designed in a certain way during medieval times. Everage cities exist 1/3 out of streets. Can we see the street still as a public space, or is it occupied by the car? Looking at Rotterdam, 75% of the public space exists of streets, and are mainly occupied by vehicles. So what if we can see the street again as a public space, rather than a place for movement. This research focuses on how the connection between houses and the place for social interaction can increase in the street in relation to the built environment. The research question for this paper: How can the street become a public space through the design of a building? The research question will be tested in Rotterdam city center. Rotterdam is after the bombing design in a car-oriented way, which makes the topic very interesting. Besides of urbanization the big cities becomes denser and denser, this also includes Rotterdam. So the city needs to extend to household all those people. What you can see in Rotterdam is that the centre of the city is slowly moving more to the south. The city’s municipality created a high-rise strategy that will make it possible to house 50.000 more people/houses in the future. But through so, the number of buildings in the center is increasing and the amount of public space decreases. Streets are playing a significant role in the design of the of new households, and to keep the city livable. To test the research question through the design of a building, a specific location in Rotterdam’s center is chosen, called the Kop van Zuid. Through analyzing streets around the world and researching the different aspects of the street. Three main ambitions are defined, which will play an essential role in this project: designing a place for social interaction, establishing a human scale in the city center, and creating a connection between the street and the building.

As a part of the Complex Projects Graduation Studio this project is set in 2100 Amsterdam and part of a collective research and design effort to look forward in architecture and urbanism. Due to technological advancements, automation and the advent of the circular economy, it may be advantageous to locate a recycling and sorting facility inside the city centre of Amsterdam to ease congestion and reduce the amount of storage capacity required for households and businesses. The central research question of this master thesis is: How will waste treatment be incorporated into the urban fabric of the city centre of Amsterdam in 2100? Subsequently, the design question is: How can the confrontation and interaction between human society and the automated infrastructure that supports it be designed? The results hint at a new type of architecture, expressive in its form and functionalism yet adapted to its urban context. The public is taught about the circular economy by attracting them with futuristic playgrounds, sporting facilities and iconic architectural elements and confronting them with waste processes. Take a look at the P5 presentation and the poster/drawing set to find out more.