MASTERPLAN VOOR DE H-BUURT IN AMSTERDAM ZUIDOOST

Between Hakfort and Huigenbos the radical quality of living in a park is a reality. But although conceived as continuous, the landscape in the H-buurt as a whole can be characterised as a series of green islands, since it is dissected by raised roads and railway tracks.
In other parts of the Bijlmer both the original apartment blocks and new terraced housing profit from each other: the terraced housing opens up the sky and fills the street with people, while the original apartment blocks leave space for a green landscape while offering views for their residents. Together these types have the potential to create a diverse living environment.
In order to make the park truly continuous the raised roads (called ‘dreven’) will be demolished and given to the park. In their place, we propose a loop around the strategic site that connects the adjacent areas. The loop will have a new and unique profile that befits the mobility of the Bijlmer: a wide boulevard where all traffic comes together.
The loop can be a starting point for development while the Dreef is still there. Adding programme to the loop will start a process of introducing more urban activities into the area. It will also use the space around the railway tracks and the motorway. In our proposal one of the parking structures (Huigenbos) will continue to function as a garage, the other (Hakfort) will be transformed into workshops and studios. We propose to demolish the ramps in the heart of this building, allowing for larger workshops on the ground floor and a raised courtyard for the levels above. Parking for users of the spaces will remain possible on the roof of the existing building while more studios will be built in a layer on top of the existing building.
The parts of the park that are freed by the demolition of the dreven will allow for new dwellings to introduce diverse economic and social groups into the area. The continuous landscape also allows for individual developments for craftsmen and tradesmen to profit from the generous spaces that the Bijlmer has to offer in comparison to areas closer to Amsterdam city centre.
This will create a kind of urbanity that can be specific for the Bijlmer: a modernist metropolis, where different functions intertwine and reinforce each other. In one continuous landscape, different people with their daily rhythms come together; people that work and live in the Bijlmer H-buurt and are proud to say so.