Planning and visibility assessment of high building development in Rotterdam
Downloads
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7480/rius.2.216Abstract
West European cities like London, Paris, Rotterdam and Frankfurt am Main have seen impressive high-rise developments over the past two decades. The cities with a longstanding tradition of urban management, building regulations and zoning plans seem to feel the need for additional instruments to control the development of what is described by McNeill (2005) as "an extremely complex spatial phenomenon". It was only after the emergence of a new type of high building development in the inner cities and suburban centres in the early 1990s that the image of high buildings started to change for the better, not just in the Netherlands but also throughout much of Europe. Even now, high buildings evoke emotions and provoke controversies. This has led them to develop policies for regulating the planning and construction of tall buildings, high-rise buildings and skyscrapers within their territory.
This article presents a systematic approach for analysing the visual impact of high building development on a city and its surrounding region, using Rotterdam as a case study. This work is based on a previous analysis that included aspects such as architectural height, year of completion, location and functional use of high buildings in the city. It allowed us to compare the actual high building development with the urban policies in place. The showcase city of Rotterdam demonstrates that a considerable distance exists between policy and reality. The city struggles to deliver a consistent and integrated policy for high-rise urban areas, although the high building developments themselves seem to be ruled by a remarkable internal logic that is not fully recognised in policymaking. By studying the height and completion year, identifying the tall building cluster as it is perceived visually, and by conducting a GISc-based visibility analysis, it provides a context to tall building designs, making the assessment of individual projects more transparant and balanced, and removing some of the emotional elements that often enter into the discussions.
How to Cite
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2011 Frank van der Hoeven, Steffen Nijhuis
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Algemeen Dagblad (7th November 2008) Coolsingeltoren eerste 'slachtoffer' crisis. Retrieved from: http://www.ad.nl/ad/nl/1038/Rotterdam/article/detail/396387/2008/11/07/Coolsingeltoren-eerste-slachtoffer-crisis.dhtml [accessed 1 September 2009]
Beauregard, R.A. (2006) The radical break in late twentieth-century urbanization. Area 38(2); 218-220
Bell, S. (1993) Elements of Visual Design in the Landscape. London, E & FN Spon.
Birmingham City Council (2003) High places, a planning framework for tall buildings. Birmingham: Development Planning Division, Strategic Directorate of Development, Birmingham City Council.
Brownste C., and Ruchelma L. (1974) Public needs and private decisions in high-rise building development - policy making model. Urban Affairs Review 10(2); 139-157
CABE and English Heritage (2007) Guidance on tall buildings. London. Retrieved from: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/upload/pdf/CABE_and_English_Heritage_Guidance_on_tall_buildings.pdf?1252156283 [accessed 1 September 2009]
CBS StatLine (2009). Retrieved from: http://statline.cbs.nl [accessed 1 September 2009]
Charney, I. (2007) The politics of design: architecture, tall buildings and the skyline of central London. Area 39(2); 195–205
Coeterier, J.F. (2000) Hoe beleven wij onze omgeving? Resultaten van 25 jaar omgevingspsychologisch onderzoek in stad en landschap. Wijchen: Peter Tychon.
DEGW (2002) London's Skyline, Views and High Buildings, SDS Technical Report Nineteen. London, DEGW.
Dienst Stedenbouw + Volkshuisvesting (2000) Hoogbouwbeleid 2000-2010. Rotterdam.
DTZ Zadelhoff (2009) Nederland compleet, Factsheets kantoren- en bedrijfsruimtemarkt medio 2009. Amsterdam. Retrieved from: http://www.dtz.nl/fbi/include/evi_imagebank/img.asp?id=1923&number=1&object_type=0&src=image [accessed 1 September 2009]
Duntley, S.Q. (1948) The Visibility of Distant Objects. Journal of the Optical Society of America 38(3); 237-249
Emporis (2009) Commercial Real Estate Information and Construction Data. Retrieved from: http://www.eporis.com [accessed 1 September 2009]
Emporis (2010) Commercial Real Estate Information and Construction Data. Retrieved from: http://www.eporis.com [accessed 1 December 2010]
Fagence, M. (1983) The planning control of the high-rise built-form - Some conceptual considerations and policy-forming parameters. Journal of Environmental Management 16(2); 79-89
Fisher, P.F. (1991) First experiments in viewshed uncertainty: the accuracy of the viewshed area. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 57; 1321-327
Fisher, P. F. (1993) Algorithm and implementation uncertainty in viewshed analysis. International Journal of Geographical Information Science 7 (4); 331-347
Fischer, P.F. (1995) An Exploration of probable viewsheds in landscape planning. Environment and Planning B: Planning and design 22; 527-546
Fisher, P.F. (1996) Extending the applicability of viewsheds in landscape planning. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing 62 (11); 1297-1302
Frenkel, A. (2006) Spatial Distribution of High-rise Buildings within Urban Areas: The Case of the Tel-Aviv Metropolitan Region, Urban Studies, 44/10, pp. 1973–1996
Germino, M.J., Reiners, W.A., Blasko, B.J., McLeod, D., and Bastian, C.T. (2001) Estimating visual properties of Rocky Mountain landscape using GIS. Landscape and Urban Planning 53; 71-84
Hoeven, van der F.D. (2002) Omgaan met grootse plannen. Nova Terra 2; 2-7
Hoeven, van der F.D. (2004) Te hoog gegrepen. Rooilijn 10; 497-503
Kaplan, R., and Kaplan, S. (1989) The experience of nature: a psychological perspective. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
Klerks, J. (2005) New Metropolitan Living and the Skyscraper in a European City, Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CBTUH) Technical Papers. Retrieved from: http://www.ctbuh.org/Portals/0/Repository/WC007-047.6662a190-ad74-4823-b8d7-fd84c1f3b388.pdf [accessed 1 September 2009]
KNMI (2010) Daggegevens van het weer in Nederland 1951 t/m 2010. Metingen weerstation Schiphol: meteorologisch zicht. De Bilt.
Landeshauptstadt Düsseldorf, Stadtplanungsamt (2004) Hochhausentwicklung in Düsseldorf Rahmenplan, Beitrage zur Stadtplanung and Stadtentwicklung in Düsseldorf. Düsseldorf: Landeshauptstadt Düsseldorf, Der Oberbürgermeister, Stadtplanungsamt.
Lörzing, H., Harbers, A., and Breedijk, M. (2007) De zichtbaarheid van de Belle van Zuylen-toren. Den Haag, Ruimtelijk Planbureau.
Maandag, B. (2001) Rotterdam Hoogbouwstad (Rotterdam High-Rise City. Rotterdam, Dienst Stedenbouw + Volkshuisvesting, Ontwikkelingsbedrijf Rotterdam.
Mayor of London (2001) Interim strategic planning guidance on tall buildings, strategic views and the skyline in London. London, Greater London Authority.
McNeill, D. (2005) Skyscraper geography. Progress in Human Geography 29(1); 41-55
Middleton, W.E. (1958) Vision through the atmosphere. Toronto; University of Toronto Press.
Nicolai, J. (1971) De visuele invloed van woonplaatsen op open ruimten. Met enkele toepassingen op het midden van west-Nederland. Delft, Technische Universiteit Delft.
Nijhuis, S. (2009) Het visuele landschap, in: Werkboek bouwstenen structuurvisie Noord-Holland 2040. Analyses en Verkenningen 3/3. Haarlem, Province of Noord-Holland.
Nijhuis, S. (2012) Landscape Architecture and GIS. Geographic Information Science in landscape architectonic research and design. Delft University of Technology (in preparation).
Ode, Å., Tveit, M.S., and Fry, G. (2008) Capturing Landscape Visual Character Using Indicators: Touching Base with Landscape Aesthetic Theory. Landscape Research 33(1); 89-117
Peters, M. (2004) Amsterdams Hoogbouwbeleid. PlanAmsterdam 1; 17-21
Pol, P.M.J. (2002) A Renaissance of Stations, Railways and Cities. Economic Effects, Development Strategies and Organisational Issues of European High-Speed-Train Stations, TRAIL Thesis Series, Deflt, Delft University Press.
Riggs, P. D., and Dean, D. J. (2007) An Investigation into the Causes of Errors and Inconsistencies in Predicted Viewsheds. Transactions in GIS 11; 175–196
Rød, J. K., and Van der Meer, D. (2009) Visibility and dominance analysis: assessing a high-rise building project in Trondheim. Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design 36(4); 698 – 710
Rutten, J. (2007) Stationslocaties, Kathedralen van de nieuwe tijd. The Hague, Ministerie van VROM.
Short, M. (2007) Assessing the impact of proposals for tall buildings on the built heritage: England’s regional cities in the 21st century. Progress in Planning 68; 97-119
Skyscrapercity (2009) Skyscrapercity XL. Retrieved from: http://xl.skyscrapercity.com [accessed 1 September 2009]
Stadtplanungsamt Frankfurt am Main (2008) Hochhausentwicklungsplan Frankfurt am Main - Fortschreibung 2008. Retrieved from: http://www.stadtplanungsamt-frankfurt.de/hochhausentwicklungsplan_frankfurt_am_main___fortschreibung_2008_5801.html?psid=8a671b2e368cd6267998d0e9945db761 [accessed 1 September 2009]
Sudjic, D. (2005) The edifice complex: how the rich and powerful shape the world. New York, Penguin.
Taillandier, I., Namias, O., and Pousse, J.F. (2009) The Invention of the European Tower. Paris,Editions A. & J. Picard / Editions du Pavillon de l'Arsenal.
Tavernor, R. (2007) Visual and cultural sustainability: The impact of tall buildings on London. Landscape and Urban Planning 83; 2–12
Tveit, M., Ode, Å., and Fry,G.(2006) Key concepts in a framework for analysing visual landscape character. Landscape Research 31(3); 229-255
UNESCO (2009) Tentative Lists: Historic Centre of Amsterdam. Retrieved from: http://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/469 [accessed 1 September 2009]
Ulzen, P. van (2007) Imagine a Metropolis, Rotterdam's Creative Class, 1970-2000. Rotterdam, 010 Publishers.
Willis, C. (1995) Form Follows Finance, Skyscrapers and Skylines in New York and Chicago. New York, Princeton Architectural Press.
