Transforming the Garden City
Type: Master Thesis
Location: Amsterdam West
2024
This thesis explores methods to revitalise deteriorating Dutch mass housing neighbourhoods, with a primary focus on Amsterdam Nieuw-West. It takes the position that to preserve the post-war heritage of the western garden cities, it is necessary to go beyond the legislative protection of cityscapes or the conservation of individual buildings. Instead, the garden city project must be continued, and its founding ideals of light, space and air adapted to the needs of today. Interventions should aim beyond sufficiency and take advantage of the potential of the existing structures to be transformed into generous and high-quality dwellings. To prevent further privatisation and demolition of the social housing stock, this project aims to turn the porch flat into a desirable alternative to the single-family home. By reconnecting the buildings to their surroundings and supporting community development, the negative stigma surrounding collective housing can be overcome to position it as a viable alternative to the prevailing ideology of home-ownership. To show that by re-using the existing, and doing more with less, we can meet today’s housing needs while remaining within our planetary boundaries.