ALPHEN AAN DEN RIJN CITY HALL ALPHEN AAN DEN RIJN

The city hall of Alphen aan den Rijn is the first project realised in the new redevelopment plan for the centre of this expanding city in the middle of the Netherlands, and sets the tone for the ambition of the future developments.

City Hall Alphen aan den Rijn
Architects Erick van Egeraat, Monica Adams, Massimo Bertolano, Ralph van Mameren
Project team Harry Pasterkamp, Rowan van Wely, Jeroen ter Haar, Colette Niemeyer, Ilse Castermans, Matthieu Brutsaert, Ezra Buenrostro Hoogwater, Jasper Jägers, Anke Schieman, Oliver von Spreckelsen, Ronald Ubels, Jerry van Veldhuizen
Contributors Aude de Broissia, Cock Peterse, Brian de Bruijn, Sabrina Friedl, Sonja Gallo, Rolf van Gils, Katrin Grubert, Frank Huibers, Filipa Tomaz, Gerben Vos, Bora Ilhan, Gerwen van der Linden, Christian Nicolas, Luc Reyn, Steven Simons
Client Municipality of Alphen aan den Rijn
Contractor HBG Utiliteitsbouw regio west Capelle a/d IJssel Constructor/
Structural engineers ABT-C, Delft
Mechanical services
Engineers Sweegers en de Bruijn, ‘s Herthogenbosch
Interior Designer EEA / Merkx + Girod architecten
Gross floor area 25.000 m2 (incl. 7056 m2 parking)
Start design 1997
Design phase 28 months
Realisation 2002 (December)
Development time 62 months
Construction time 34 months
Height of building 21m
Height of atrium 18m
Number of levels atrium 5
Number of above ground stories 5,5
Use of building city hall, municipal offices and public functions
Area of site 25.000 m2
Principal structural materials steel and curtain wall
Other material used stone, glass, steel and concrete

The council sought to define its communication to the local people as being transparent, open and inviting. The building’s open appearance relates directly to this directive and is expressed through the transparent glass facade. The choice of light and natural materials internally also reinforces the building’s public function and encourages visitors. All the public facilities are located on the ground floor with the upper floor council hall projecting over the entrance, expressing its accessibility to the public. The council made the choice for a free form and curving exterior in one of the first stages of the design process, thereby opting for an innovative statement. The overall shape was defined in such a way that it relates and reunites the existing scale differences of the surroundings. On one side the building is higher to respond to the city scale of the Raoul Wallenberg Square, while on the other sides the building is more modest in scale, facing the lower heights of the residential area. The elevation is treated as a continuous but layered skin, wrapped around and thus connecting the three parts of the building (city hall, service department and offices). The various layers slide over each other, revealing the layer appropriate and allowing the different parts of the complex to express their own individuality. The main volume (city hall) has a transparent elevation with an enclosed atrium behind. The lower volume (service department and offices) is, although partly transparent as well, predominantly stony and substantial. By changing its appearance the design responds to the programmatic and spatial requirements of the complex as well as sensitively react to the urban nuances of the location. Without losing itself in monumentality, it refers to the iconic function that the ‘House of the City’ historically has. Open, inviting and accessible for all citizens it can be seen as a contemporary beacon, reflecting the growing community’s image.