Van Riemsdijk NDSM
The Embark housing complex is part of the transformation of the NDSM wharf. Build in cross-laminated timber, recycled bricks, and reused concrete pavement, it consists of three buildings divided over seven volumes, with a total of 270 units. A sixty-metre-high tower forms the core of this ensemble that echoes the site’s history as a wharf. The ground floor of the complex contains bike storage, studio dwellings, commercial spaces, and ateliers. The private sector homes have a sculptural appearance due to the cascade of balconies. The social and mid-range rental apartments occupy six of the seven volumes, which are connected by a semi-underground, two-storey parking garage with a garden on top of it. The garden offers the residents a compensation for the absence of a public park in the neighbourhood. The naturally irrigated garden has an ecological value, as it contributes to the urban biodiversity; as a cool and shaded place in the complex, it has a positive climatic impact; the garden is also important as a shared social space. Vegetation continues in the perimeter of the complex. The Embark offers a form of urban living in which industrial heritage and sustainability add to the quality of life.