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Block 0 - Casco lofts

Client
CPO De Hoofden Houthaven 1 & 2 Association
Architect
Marc Koehler Architects, Thijs Asselbergs architectuurcentrale, de Architekten Cie., Hootsmans architectuurbureau, Space Encounters
Contractor
ERA Contour
City of
West
New construction site
Houthaven
Number of dwellings
55

Block 0 – Shell lofts: nominated for the 2017 Amsterdam New-Build Prize

Casco-lofts is a residential concept in which residents can assemble their own loft within a fixed spatial and financial framework. The idea thus meets the wishes of buyers looking for customized homes or shell DIY houses. The Casco-lofts communities are organized into associations that bring future residents together, even before the building and their homes have been designed. The idea is that active buyer participation results in tight-knit social networks.

This concerns two plots, one of which was developed through Collective Private Commissioning and the other through Co-commissioning (MO). In the latter form, a developer involves future residents in the development process at an early stage. The complex consists of three volumes: a high-rise building on Haparandaweg, a low-rise building on Houthavenkade, and a connecting section with a roof garden. The lofts are approximately five meters high, eighteen meters deep, and six meters wide. There are four typologies: micro-lofts, low-rise lofts, high-rise lofts, and penthouses, varying in size from 30 m2 to 180 m2.

Regarding sustainability, various techniques have been applied, including CO2-controlled ventilation, heat recovery, cooling based on canal water, hot fill connections, active solar energy from solar cells, passive solar energy through large triple-glazed facades, and charging points for electric cars and bicycles.