van der madeweg

From Office Building to Student Residence  |  Ouder-Amstel |  the Netherlands

The former Vroom & Dreesman office building, built in 1967 and designed by Rotterdam-based Kraaijvanger Architects, has fallen into disrepair and become a thorn in the side of neighbouring businesses. Together with the owner of the building and in consultation with the municipality, we explored whether it would be possible to transform this building into a student hotel and if this transformation could be a positive contribution to the area.

The building will accommodate 81 hotel rooms for students. On the ground floor, the lobby annex coffee bar is also open to the employees of the surrounding buildings – a public feature that turns the building into a meeting place for the entire neighbourhood. From the metro station the green, spacious profile of Van der Madeweg provides the hotel with a beautiful entrance. Sports facilities such as a basketball court can also give this urban space a recreational function and enhance the liveliness of the neighbourhood. The top floor accommodates a library, a communal area and a roof terrace with magnificent views. The new corridor provides views of the surroundings while allowing daylight to penetrate into the core of the building. The façade of poured concrete elements must be insulated. The new window frames and the stucco insulation give the entire building exterior a new, contemporary look and at the same time they solve a number of the current building’s thermal problems in a simple and inexpensive way.