The Westerdok residential complex in the Amsterdam docks became part of the new VOC Cour array, which is a “courtyard” surrounded by residential buildings of different heights.
The 10-storey Westerdok also faces the embankment. It has 46 apartments and a kindergarten. Its glazed facades are enlivened by stripes of balconies of varying width, offering views of the city. The maximum openness of the house to the outside space distinguishes it from other brick houses in the complex.
In Rotterdam, in the pre-war city center - the Laurens district, construction of the Markthal complex began. Its main function is a covered market, but it also includes housing and public space. Markthal is a 100 m long “arch”, under which there are 70 stalls of the food market. From the ends, this structure is covered with glass screens. The market floor arch is also a 12-storey residential building with 250 apartments. All the main spaces of the apartments face the outside, exposed to sunlight, the side of the building, and the kitchens, storage rooms and dining rooms face the inside, into the market space. The lower tiers of the building are occupied by grocery stores, restaurants and cafes, which will be open in the evening, after the end of market trading, when the space under the arch will turn into a "city living room". The Markthal Arch will be built on a busy route between the train station and the shopping streets, guaranteeing the popularity of the new complex and the revitalization of the entire Laurens area.
