Sportscentre Rozenburg

Koen van Velsen architects’ sports centre in Rotterdam has been situated in the transitional area between an existing residential quarter and a green recreational area. The sports centre mediates between the two. The building marks the entry to Rozenburg, a village part of Rotterdam, and increases the recognisability of the green belt surrounding the village. The building volume has been carefully incorporated into the green surroundings. Despite the singular volume, every façade has an individual expression. The main functions of the building can be well read in the facades. The all-round character results in a variable appearance.

The green façade brickwork was specifically developed for this project and links the centre to the adjacent existing buildings and allows the sports centre to dissolve into the green surroundings. This makes the sports centre a ‘remarkable unremarkable’ building. The brick, timber, stainless steel and glass materialisation both outside as inside the building resonate with the surroundings and are deployed to express contrasts in solid and void, rough and smooth, light and dark. The glass and reflective cladding make the internal life inside the building visible and mirror the surrounding foliage.

The sports centre is simple and straightforward in organisation. The clear arrangement results in a navigable building. The landscape design has been specifically attuned to the building (and vice-versa). The many perspectives and vistas enable the surrounding landscape and sky to be fully experienced from within the building. Functions overflow from inside to outside. Green courtyards and lightwells bring daylight and the landscape deep into the heart of the building.

The centre is a building for and by its many and diverse users. The building comprises various functions such as a sports hall with gallery, a swimming pool, a multifunctional hall, a bar and a diversity of other communal functions. The interior and the landscape have also been designed by Koen van Velsen architects. The building was deliberately not designed as an icon but as a coming together of building, architecture, interior and landscape.

The sportscentre was awarded the Rotterdam Architecture Award 2016 by a jury chaired by MVRDV’s Winy Maas. The building is also nominated by the Association of Dutch Architects for the Building of the Year Award 2017.

Koen van Velsen architects
Frank Beurskens, Erik-Jan van Dalfsen, Ilona Deymann, Steven van der Heijden, Wouter Laros, Annemarie Margré, Gero Rutten, Martijn van Sluijters, Jeroen Spit, Koen van Velsen, Violette van Velsen

Contractor: Bouwbedrijf De Vries en Verburg B.V.
Structural engineer: Goudstikker de Vries
M + E engineer: DWA
Building physics and fire safety: DGMR Advisors