Rokade

A place for people.

Client: Unsolicited
Status: Proposition essay included in Visie Verlevendiging Wilhelminapier 2017

500 citizens of Rotterdam dine together in the open air. A classical concert with a metropolitan décor of high-rise buildings as a backdrop. An outdoor photo exhibition. An outdoor cinema on the quay along the river Maas.

“People are now at the centre of the place that was previously programmed for cars.”

Our proposal is to change the parking lot on the Plot Baltimore into a programmable square: Rokade, a temporary event spot where everything can happen. People are now at the center of the place that was previously programmed for cars. Rokade is meant as a catalyst. An experiment that offers new opportunities for the further development of the Wilhelminapier by creating a multifunctional place to stay. A temporary intervention with relatively low investments but with maximum effect: a lively place and a basis for small-scale initiatives. No longer a transit area between the Center and Katendrecht, but a pleasant place to stay with its own unique identity. The public space forms the window of the Wilhelminapier and invites you to visit and participate.

“…a pleasant place to stay with its own unique identity.”

Facts

Project name: Rokade, a temporary interpretation of a parking deck
Location: Plot Baltimore, Wilhelminapier [the Netherlands]
Program: Supercharger to serve a lively public space. A place to program (meso scale) and to stay (micro scale)

Credits

Design team: Tom van Odijk, David Baars, Pedro Rocha Maia & Flavio Martella