Transformation of a monument into apartments and a clothing shop

The Oude Binnenweg is one of the few streets in the centre of Rotterdam that survived the bombing of 1940. That makes every building here part of the city's memory. In this monument from 1873, only the ground floor was still in use as a shop. The floors above stood vacant, as they do in so many buildings along the city's shopping streets.

We have brought living back above the shop. The ground floor houses a clothing shop that keeps the building open to the street. Above it, 12 apartments make use of the original structure, the high ceilings and the daylight from both sides. The upper floors have their own entrance again, so the building works as a whole and not only at street level.

Our approach was to do as little as needed and as much as it takes. Historic elements such as the facade, beams and details have been restored and left visible. Everything new is clearly of today, reversible where possible, and built with materials that will age well alongside the old. The result is a monument that is fully in use again, as a place to live and to shop in the heart of the city.