Steigereiland in Armsterdam
Water and scarcity of land for urban development become two major driven factors in developing floating houses in the Netherlands. Floating houses have dual functions for adapting to climate changes (floods and sea level rise) and further as an alternative dwelling to reduce congestion in urban area.
IJburg lies on man-made islands and water is present all around, giving the district its unique and distinct character. Steigereiland(‘jetty island’), as part of the urban development plan of IJburg, was designated as experimental area. Steigereiland has floating houses that make use of surface water reservoir. The water for the project is an enclosed water eqquipped with a lock to control the water level. The site is divided into east and west parts. The western part of the inner lake is on a project basis. The pile and floating houses at west part is designed by an architect, Marlies Rohmer; and constructed by a boathouse builder ABC in Urk. While the eastern side is allocated for self-built plots on water, where individual
can design their own floating house, free from the regulations regarding the architectural appearance.
The wonderful thing about this place is the intense way of living with the seasons. In winter, the house will be frozen. In summer, the gusts of wind are very noticeable, with the houseboat moving slowly to and fro.
Because the jetty is fixed and the house moves up and down with the water level, the cables behind the box have to be flexible. All cables and pipes now run under the surface of the jetty: gas, electricity, water pipes for drinking water, fire fighting and sewerage, telecommunication and cable television.
Spatial pattern (connection with land and water):
The houses are linked to the land by the jetties. People can get off from a boat on water that linked to IJ Lake. Besides, jetties are used as a circulation and access to the houses and provide a link for utilities (fresh water, electricity, sewage) to existing infrastructure on the land.
At the west part, besides the similarity in design and materials, the floating house has 3 types: a single unit (Vancouver type), a double unit (Sydney type) and a triple unit (Seattle). All of them are a three-stories floating house attached each other and that are accessible from water. The concrete jetties act as a public space and circulation and are fitted with cables and pipes for utilities. For safety standard, there are railings and fire walls; a bridge at perpendicular position to jetties functions as escape routes in case emergency.
Drawbacks may prevent reaching goals:
Floating buildings also has drawback in stability, especially adapting building to the fluctuated water. The weight of a floating house must be evenly distributed over the surface area. This applies to the building itself as well as the furnishings and installations inside. Sometimes, the house tilts when we move no more than a bookcase or when shower water fails to run away.
In addition, there is an annual deposit of one to two centimeters of sludge. This can add up to a thick layer. So, the floating houses have a depth of 1.5m to keep enough space between the concrete foundation and the bottom of the lake.
