To the front page

11/1 Jurists want to stay in Oudemanhuispoort

8/2 Mayor’s portrait

8/2 Websites for social cohesion

7/2 Spreading tourism proceeds with difficulty

7/2 GroenLinks on districts: Be a man

6/2 Zuideramstel opens new office on Sabbath

5/2 The truth about integration

4/2 Wilders has little support on Amsterdam

3/2 Elite involved in neighbourhood

2/2 Johnnie Walker avoids taxes in Amsterdam

1/2 Rotterdam to tinker with district councils as well

31/1 Wooden rowing boats to disappear from Amstel

31/1 ZeeburgTV launched

27/1 Privacy activists to mess up loyalty card system

27/1 A few were still coughing, but that was an act

27/1 Chrisis in de Baarsjes

26/1 Youth have positive view of districts

24/1 Action groups call for Carmel and Jaffa boycott

24/1 PvdA members dismiss plan for districts

23/1 KLM takes on crisis with new uniform

23/1 District office not squatted

21/1 Merge districts

20/1 Closing squat bar Vrankrijk not necessary

20/1 Cleaners welcome new Schiphol director

18/1 Palestine at the Jewish Historical Museum

18/1 What is the right size for a district?

17/1 PvdA Oost against fewer districts

16/1 Committee: 7 districts by 2010

15/1 Soldiers may attend Afghanistan debate after all

15/1 Bait bike leads to arrest

14/1 Youth for Christ to republish vacancies

13/1 Paintings of the Zuidas

13/1 New Youth for Christ contoversy

11/1 Social cohesion initiative raises eyebrows

10/1 Fewer districts in 2010

10/1 Zuidas: People feel that we are losers

9/1 Fun on the ice - but not for all

9/1 Supermarket coupon fraud thwarted

9/1 I Amsterdam must remain exclusive

8/1 Use term Apartheid in every discussion

8/1 No city kiosk in Amsterdam yet

7/1 Snow

7/1 Fatima Elatik to run Zeeburg

7/1 Municipal managers to return to shop floor

4/1 Police: take photo of strange people

3/1 Gaza protest criticises politicians

1/1 Thousands to protest against attacks on Gaza

1/1 Mustapha Laboui leaves district council

2008 Archive

2007 Archive

2006 Archive

2005 Archive

No swimming at the Visserplein

20 August 2006 – The winner of the prestigious Prix de Rome has ambitious plans for the Visserplein, but the district has its doubts whether they are feasible. On 5 October, alderman Tjeerd Herrema and district alderwoman Anne Lize van der Stoel are supposed to reach a decision.

During a first round, the candidates for the Prix de Rome were asked to make a design for the Visserplein. Ronald Rietveld, who would eventually win the prize, came up with a city garden below ground level, with large fountains and a water basin that people can swim in.

The basin should play a role in absorbing water during heavy rainfall. Through open channels, the water should be transported from the surroundings to the basin.

In the Parool, Rietveld argued for a grand approach: “Every major city has at least one place with large fountains. Why does not Amsterdam yet? We may as well go for something big. Not just a small water tank. No, a cathedral of water, with fountains at least fifteen metres high”.

A spokesperson of the Centrum district calls the plan ‘visionary’, which is a polite way of saying that he has his doubts about the feasibility. The fact that the square is part of an important thoroughfare for traffic into the city plays an important role here.

TUNFUN
For years, a discussion has been going on about reducing the Weesperstraat to two traffic lanes. However, especially the conservative VVD wants nothing to do with measures that would reduce car traffic. A variant with lower traffic intensity would be easier to reconcile with plans such as Rietveld’s.

Currently, civil servants are developing plans for the Visserplein. On 5 October alderman Herrema (social-democrat PvdA) and district alderwoman Van der Stoel (VVD) will discuss the issue. If they manage to reach a decision, the plans can be elaborated and presented to neighbourhood residents rather quickly.

It is quite conceivable that elements of the designs of the Prix de Rome candidates – not just Rietveld’s – will be used in the plans that are currently being developed. The plan may also resurface when residents are consulted. Among them, there seems to be some enthusiasm for Rietveld’s plan, the district acknowledges.

Another issue is the TunFun children’s paradise, which is now located below the Visserplein. The location is temporary, but it is conceivable that the TunFun will be included in the definitive plans for the Visserplein.

Want to receive News from Amsterdam? Click here