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Hotel Chicago Rotterdam to open in 2021

Bryan van Putten city news 28 June 2018

In 2021, the brand new Hotel Chicago will open its doors. The 182-room hotel will feature a stunning see-through floating pool between its two towers. The hip new hotel will be located on the Wilhelminapier, behind Hotel New York.

The hotel's unique design is the work of Annette Bos, an architect at Team V Architectuur. The idea is that erecting two buildings will allow for green space between them. This green recreational area will be freely accessible to all and not just hotel guests; something that's very welcome in an area with so many skyscrapers. The hotel itself will be part of the neighbourhood and will include publically accessible commercial spaces.

Hotel Chicago fact sheet

182 rooms (including 18 long-stay apartments)
Located on the Wilhelminapier
Floating Pool
Bakkerij Westers (bakery)
Construction starts in Q3 2019
Hotel Chicago opens in 2021

Hotel Chicago artist impressions

Hotel Chicago Rotterdam artist impressions 📷 Team V Architectuur

Location: Hotel Chicago

The hotel will be located behind Hotel New York, on a lot currently in use as a parking area. However, upon completion, there'll be a public underground parking garage beneath the hotel.

Record number of homes being built in Rotterdam

Bryan van Putten city news 26 June 2018

With the start of the Little C residential project near Coolhaven, the number of homes being built this year has reached 2600. Based on the progress of other construction projects, it is likely that number will reach a record-breaking 3800 before the year's end. The current record, set only last year (2017), stands at 3764.

Alderman Robert Simons of urban development announced the figures before driving the first pile of the Little C project; a new construction project located next to the Coolhaven. "Rotterdammers want a living career in their own city, you can see that at Little C" he said.

According to Simons, more than half of the buyers come from Rotterdam and want to live more spacious, green or better. "The demand for houses is enormous and we must continue to build those houses. If we keep this pace we will break the building record again."

A selection of the projects that were started in 2018:

De Startmotor (566 homes near the Ikazia hospital)
Laan van Tinbergen (56 homes in park 16Hoven)
Zuiderhof (73 homes on the site of the former Zuiderziekenhuis)
Transformation of the Lee Towers (840 homes in the former Marconitorens)

And later in 2018

Cooltower (281 homes)
Zalmhaventoren (482 homes)

Rotterdam will continue to build on substantially, as agreed upon in the 2030 Housing Vision (Woonvisie 2030). Within the boundaries of the city, new areas will be designated for the purpose of building new homes. These areas include vacant offices and shops.

Given the current pace of construction, it is expected that the ambition outlined in the Woonvisie accord will be realized much earlier than 2030.

An evening of live music and art at Keilecafe

Bryan van Putten city news 24 June 2018

One of the most highly anticipated grand openings of the year is that of Keilecafe. In its own words, Keilecafe is more than a venue; it's a permanent festival. Keilecafe aims to be a place where the warm fuzzy feeling you experience at festival never comes to an end.

It's a cool Saturday evening in June and quite a few people have gathered at a lot in the Rotterdam's Nieuw-Mathenesse area. Though the official opening is to take place in July, the Keilecafe is already open for business. Of course, there's also something special going on: this evening, the Pica Pica Zomerparade, a travelling live music and art exposition, lands at Keilecafe.

This edition features live music by Auxs and the EQs and an art exposition by Martijn Koolstra.

AUXs and the EQs perform at Keilecafe 📷 Bryan van Putten

Auxs and the EQs perform a mix of covers and original songs ranging from soul and funk to pop and even dance. Speaking of dance, many people also start to dance to the grooves. Auxs, the band's frontwoman, is a lively performer who really knows how to get the crowd going. The band's performance was definitely a perfect way to cap an already perfect afternoon.

Be sure to check them out if you haven't yet and follow the Auxs and the EQs Facebook page.

Sculpture by Martijn Koolstra at Keilecafe 📷 Bryan van Putten

Unfortunately, there weren't as many works of art on display as expected. This sculpture, with its piercing (missing) eyes, was crafted by Martijn Koolstra. She quietly stood watch over the event, at times drawing confused gazes from passersby.

Keilecafe: a neverending festival

Located at about a stone's throw away from the Marconiplein tram & metro station, it's easy to see why there's been a lot of buzz in the media. As far as festivals go, Keilecafe definitely looks the part, though you won't find a ticket office or any fences here. The decor features a 14.6-metre yellow shipping container that has been repurposed as a kitchen and an old utility vehicle that used to belong to Deutsche Bahn.

Location: Keilecafe

Pica Pica Parade

All summer long, Twenty-six of the most interesting and newest hotspots in Rotterdam open their doors to the Pica Pica Summer Parade (there's also a winter edition). Every Saturday and Sunday from June through August, unsuspecting shoppers and patrons are pleasantly surprised with live music and art. For more information on events by Pica Pica, check out the official Pica Pica website.

Event photos: Pica Pica Zomerparade @ Keilecafe

Keilecafe 📷 Bryan van Putten

Keilecafe - AUXs and the EQs 📷 Bryan van Putten

Keilecafe AUXs and the EQs 📷 Bryan van Putten

Rotterdam Rooftop Days 2018 draw 20,000 visitors

Bryan van Putten city news 05 June 2018

Another successful edition of the Rotterdam Rooftop Days concluded last weekend. Twenty thousand people attended the annual event. This year, fifty-six roofs were made available to the public.

The weather certainly played a role this edition, as visitors were treated to one extreme at the beginning and another towards the end of the three-day event. From the pouring rain on Friday to a cloudy Saturday and finally a summery Sunday. As far as visitors are concerned, it was also a diverse edition. Many of those in attendance were either tourists or visitors from outside the city. At the information desk, many languages could be heard; from German to Chinese and from Arabic to Polish.

Roof use, even after the Rooftop Days

The goal of the Rotterdam Rooftop Days is to stimulate roof use, even after the festival. That's why the opening of Luchtpark Hofbogen was one of the highlights. The former Hofplein Station was permanently opened during the Rotterdam Rooftop Days. This is where Rotterdammers and tourists alike can go from now to enjoy a rooftop view, as it is open daily.

Large crowds at the grand opening of Luchtpark Hofbogen (Sunday 3 June 2018) 📷 Frank Hanswijk

Dakheld Award 2018

On the festival's Knowledge Day, a meeting of professionals who value roof innovation, the folks at Green Deal Groene Daken were awarded the Dakheld 2018. They were praised by the jury for their hard work behind the scenes: they bring government, trade associations and knowledge organizations together to make roof innovation possible.

Dreamwalker Yuri Rhodenborgh (23) sits on the highline, 130 meters up in the air, during his stunt (Saturday 2 June) 📷 Frank Hanswijk

At Stationsplein, people stare breathlessly at the highline stunt (Saturday 2 June) 📷 Frank Hanswijk

Visitors walking on the roof a building (Sunday 3 June) 📷 Igor Blok

Visitors enjoy a movie during 'Rooftop Movies met Pleinbioscoop,' on the roof of Q-Park de Bijenkorf (Saturday 2 June) 📷 Frank Hanswijk

Post Rotterdam: new 150-meter skyscraper announced

Bryan van Putten city news 25 May 2018

Plans have been announced for a brand new 150-meter skyscraper in Rotterdam's city centre. The tower will incorporate the post office building, a national monument built between 1915-1922, as part of its façade.

Post Rotterdam is a new 60,000m² building project which will incorporate a high-end residential complex with 300 apartments, a unique 5-star hotel (16,000m²) with 230 rooms, and various retail outlets (8,000m²).

The architecture firm in charge of designing the project is ODA. An American firm that has built a solid reputation with its projects in New York. One of the most exciting features of the project is that the building will be accessible from all four sides. Architect Eran Chen recently travelled to Rotterdam to present the design.

#postkantoor pic.twitter.com/G8q2RNRnoH
— Antti Liukku (@anttiliukku) May 30, 2018

Plaatjes! #postkantoor pic.twitter.com/A2BamtiZHN
— Antti Liukku (@anttiliukku) May 30, 2018

Architect Eran Chen is uit New York overgevlogen om zijn plan voor het postkantoor te presenteren aan de Welstandscommissie. De zaal kijkt uit op het monumentale pand pic.twitter.com/WsvxmKEmjA
— Antti Liukku (@anttiliukku) May 30, 2018

Grandeur

Centraal Postkantoor, the historic former post office, is located on the Coolsingel, in the heart of the city. Sadly, the iconic building, which boasts an absolutely stunning interior design, has been vacant for ten years. According to developer Omnam Investment Group, "once the renovation is complete, the building will be returned to its former grandeur, so the public can once again enjoy all the elegance of this historic monument."

Centraal Postkantoor Rotterdam Interior 01

There goes the view

The project has its critics though. Residents of the nearby Timmerhuis (designed by Rem Koolhaas) aren't happy that they are going to be staring at a building from now on while tenant Museum Rotterdam is worried about accessibility.

Standing tall at 150 meters, it's going to rival the tallest buildings in the Netherlands. Construction is slated to start in 2019.

We're looking forward to it!