Horizon Haven-Stad 2075
15.11.24
—23.03.25
In 2025, Amsterdam will celebrate its 750th anniversary, but the city continues to evolve. One of the most significant transformations is currently taking place in the west of the city: Haven-Stad. While construction has already begun in Sloterdijk, other parts won’t see the first homes until 2029. What will this area look like in 2075, when Amsterdam celebrates its 800th birthday?
In the exhibition Horizon Haven-Stad 2075, we explore the future through the eyes of various fictional characters. Through their personal stories, you’ll discover important themes such as energy transition, sustainability, urban densification, and industrial heritage. You’ll also be invited to reflect on your own urban future.
Haven-Stad: A New Urban District
In Haven-Stad, industrial areas are being transformed into mixed-use neighborhoods. This area, stretching from Sloterdijk and Westerpark to the Cornelis Douwes terrain and Noorder IJ-plas, will provide space for 40,000 to 70,000 homes and 105,000 m² of new business space. The complexity of this undertaking—blending living, working, water, transport, climate, sustainability, and energy efficiency—is immense. Haven-Stad is, by definition, a testing ground, a laboratory, and a precursor to all the urban challenges that must be solved in the future.
Interactive Model
Since 2023, Arcam has displayed the interactive model Model City Haven-Stad. This model provides a detailed insight into the spatial development of the Metropolitan Region, with six smaller models explaining specific sub-areas, such as Hemknoop and the Cornelis Douwes terrain, in more detail. For the Horizon Haven-Stad 2075 exhibition, the model is expanded with mini-stories that make the complex challenges of this area even more tangible. Different perspectives are explored: What does living and/or working in this new district mean for a dockworker, a student, a creative business, or a family from Nieuw-West? Even the perspective of animals is considered.
From Harbor Architecture to Urban Densification
The exhibition showcases notable buildings that already exist in Haven-Stad and highlights the area’s industrial heritage. Take, for instance, the Houtveemloods, a monumental warehouse that originally stored timber from Africa, (South) America, and later Scandinavia. How does such a monument fit into a (decolonized) sustainable energy transition?
Moreover, Haven-Stad will become a district with an urban density Amsterdam has never seen before. What will this mean for daily life and existing amenities? For example, the football club SDZ and the Zonnehoek community garden may not be guaranteed a place in the densified area. And how might a fox, currently benefiting from the tranquility and open spaces, adapt to the increasing development that primarily promotes green facades and roofs?
A Sustainable Future
In Horizon Haven-Stad 2075, other important themes are also addressed, such as sustainable waste management. Carolien Schippers, founder of -C-A-S- and Architect in Residence at Arcam, is investigating urban waste systems in this area, emphasizing the long-term effects of waste processing on ecosystems and future generations.
The exhibition offers an in-depth and interactive insight into the complex challenges of Haven-Stad and invites visitors to actively consider their own wishes and opportunities for this new urban district. It shows that Haven-Stad is not just an area awaiting transformation but a dynamic place full of potential, although its success is not guaranteed.