Revitalising Rotterdam’s Old North district

Five historic and iconic buildings on Burgemeester Roosstraat in the Oude Noorden of Rotterdam have undergone a metamorphosis. The buildings, originally built between 1886-1901, have been restored by Fullhouse into family homes with a garden and affordable rental homes.

Historic value

Historically, the buildings were built as residential houses with a business function on the ground floor. With a hot water distillery and a blacksmith, this was typical of that time. The buildings are part of the protected cityscape “Water project” and are therefore characterized as historically valuable. The buildings have been inhabited by squatters for 18 years.

There have been cracks in the facades covered with steel structures for years and the roof moldings and window frames show serious skew. For all five buildings, the foundations have been repaired after the contaminated subsoil has been remediated.

In March 2020, a raging fire caused additional damage to the buildings that were squatted at the time, with all the ensuing consequences. We have always seen it as a challenging and very rewarding task to restore this part of Rotterdam to its former glory and to restore quality homes on the edge of the city center. Demolishing and then rebuilding everything would be obvious.

However, Fullhouse considers the history of Rotterdam to be of decisive value in opting for large-scale restoration where possible, while preserving the original character of the façades with their graceful details. Indoors, the homes have been modernized and made more sustainable to meet the requirements of today.

Delivery

The old prison has been transformed into homes, right behind the project.  The restoration of these five buildings is yet another step in the development of the historic Oude Noorden.

The buildings have recently been delivered. The front façades have been fully preserved as can be seen in the images below. The rear façades were too deteriorated to save and have been cautiously rebuilt.

This project contains everything that makes us happy as a developer. In 2020 we bought squatted buildings with a high risk of collapse, asbestos, extensive fire damage, a soil remediation task and a failing construction. In 2023 we will deliver 22 sustainable homes in protected cityscape pre World War II buildings for the city of Rotterdam.

See the interior images below.