B30 – Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Remodeling a Ministry
28/04/2017.
[The Hague] The Netherlands
metalocus, ÁNGEL BLANCO
metalocus, ÁNGEL BLANCO
The B30 - Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 has been designed by KAAN Architecten as the entry of an international competition (Public Private Partnership - PPP) launched by the Central Government Real Estate Agency, won in 2014 by a consortium led by Facilicom with Braaksma & Roos Architectenbureau, Deerns, Pieters Bouwtechniek, RebelGroup, and KAAN Architecten. The building houses under the same roof five unique users: the independent planning bureaus (CPB, SCP, PBL), the Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (Rli) and the Dutch Data Protection Authority (DPA).
Access. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
Detail floor. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
Corridor. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Sebastian van Damme
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
Ceiling detail. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Sebastian van Damme
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Sebastian van Damme
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
Detail. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
Staircase. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Sebastian van Damme
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Sebastian van Damme
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
Detail. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Sebastian van Damme
B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN. Photograph © Karin Borghouts
Site plan. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Ground floor plan. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
First floor plan. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Fourth floor plan. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Roof plan. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Section. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Section. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Elevation. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Elevation. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Elevation. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Elevation. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Construction details. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Construction details. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Construction details. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Construction details. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Construction details. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Construction details. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Construction details. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Floor design. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Diagrams. B30. Bezuidenhoutseweg 30 by KAAN.
Originally built in 1917, by the then chief government architect Daniel E.C. Knuttel, as a Ministry during a period of austerity and renovated in 1994 by professor Hans Ruijssenaars, B30 is an imposing structure with a strong, distinct architectural character and it is a Grade 1 listed building in the Netherlands.
B30 is located in The Hague city center, alongside the Haagse Bos green space. It stands on Bezuidenhoutseweg, an historical arterial route connecting the Royal Palace Huis ten Bosch and the Dutch Parliament, Het Binnenhof.
B30 is located in The Hague city center, alongside the Haagse Bos green space. It stands on Bezuidenhoutseweg, an historical arterial route connecting the Royal Palace Huis ten Bosch and the Dutch Parliament, Het Binnenhof.
Description of project by KAAN Architecten
KAAN Architecten’s design with its clear layout and architecture transforms the enclosed, hierarchical building – with an atmosphere representative of people’s perception of the State in the early 1900s – into an open, transparent and inviting setting in line with a contemporary and state-of-the-art working environment.
Thanks to an acute analysis that has mapped the essential qualities of the original design to create an inspired framework, the historic building is seen not as a dead museum piece, but as a vital and sustainable component of the total design.
Anchored in its urban setting, broader landscape and historic environment, B30 features an accessible and transparent public ground-floor, including restaurant, café, library, meeting and seminar rooms. All passageways are aligned with each other, creating long sightlines through the building, enhancing contact with the street, woods and gardens, and simplifying orientation and way-finding.
At the core of the building, a large Atrium becomes the quiet heart of B30. Here, Dutch artist Rob Birza was called upon to design a new mosaic floor pattern, a garden abstraction giving life to an internal landscape that is visually connected with the city forest and the new side gardens.
Knuttel’s original design has been expanded on both sides: the Seminar Foyer features meeting rooms, seminar rooms, and a sunken auditorium running through the glazed space, while the Work Foyer is characterized by lounge and working areas, an espresso bar and a library. The Foyers’ partitions feature large pivoted glass doors encased by high-gloss aluminum frames opening onto the gardens.
Both Atrium and the Foyers have been covered by a series of daylight shafts that borrow from the ubiquitous original coffered ceilings and take as their design principle a square base topped with triangular glass. These elements have been positioned for an optimal dispersion of sunlight, while preventing overheating by solar radiation.
The monumental staircase grants access to the magnificent former Minister’s Room on the first floor, while the Atrium visually connects with the four upper floors, which accommodates the workspaces of the various institutions. A new level of offices is situated over the “nave” of the building, and flows into the roof, where the height has been reduced from 30 to 20 metres to bring good scale and proportions to the inner courtyard.
The façades of the new additions consist of a sandblasted concrete frames filled with stone and a colouring agent that matches the tones of the original building. Moreover, the change in hierarchical relations and the importance of the ground floor has been expressed in the façade by enlarging the windows: the openings have been taken down to the stone plinth of the building, moving the window sills down and lengthening the jambs.
B30 now gives space to contemporary ideas regarding government transparency, seen through the original design. A spatial expression of a shared vision that will inspire curiosity and invite research and debate.
More information
Architects
KAAN Architecten (Kees Kaan, Vincent Panhuysen, Dikkie Scipio)
Project architect
Tjerk de Boer, Timo Cardol, Kevin Claus, Sebastian van Damme, Paolo Faleschini, Raluca Firicel, Cristina Gonzalo Cuairán, Walter Hoogerwerf, Marlon Jonkers, Hedwig van der Linden, Loes Martens, Marija Mateljan, Giuseppe
Mazzaglia, Maurizio Papa, Ismael Planelles Naya, Christian Sluijmer, Koen van Tienen
Collaborators
Construction advisor.- Pieters Bouwtechniek, Delft
Restoration advisor.- Braaksma & Roos Architectenbureau, The Hague
Technical installations advisor.- Breijer Bouw & Installatie, Rotterdam
Construction W+E installations.- Breijer Bouw & Installatie, Rotterdam; Deerns, Rijswijk
Building physics, fire control and acoustics.- Deerns, Rijswijk
Financial advisor.- RebelGroup, Rotterdam
Lighting design.- Studio Rublek, Schiphol
Mosaic design artist.- Rob Birza (1962, Geldrop, NL)
Terrazzo mosaic realisation.- Van der Zande Terrazzo en Mozaiek (Eric van der Zande and Marco Maarschalkerweerd)
Monumental staircase and Minister’s Room lighting fixture.- Jan Pauwels
Wooden furniture.- 13 Speciaal, Rotterdam
Offices.- Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB), Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP), Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL), Council for the Environment and Infrastructure (RLi), Dutch Data Protection Authority (Dutch DPA)
Client
Primary client.- Central Government Real Estate Agency (Rijksvastgoedbedrijf)
Direct client.- Facilicom Services Group BV
Contractor
Breijer Bouw & Installatie, Rotterdam
Areas
Total floor area.- 21,000 sqm
Building costs
€31,000,000
Dates
Design phase.- August 2012 – April 2015
Construction phase.- January 2015 - February 2017
Location
Bezuidenhoutseweg 30, The Hague (NL)
Kees Kaan. KAAN Architecten
KAAN Architecten is a Rotterdam based architectural firm operating in a global context and merging practical and academic expertise within the fields of architecture, urbanism and research on the built environment. The studio, led by Kees Kaan, Vincent Panhuysen and Dikkie Scipio, consists of an international team of architects, landscape architects, urban planners, engineers and graphic designers. KAAN Architecten believes in cross-pollination between projects and disciplines as an essential tool to fostering a critical debate within the studio.
Since the launch of the firm, KAAN Architecten has handled and supervised a wide range of projects, actively working with the private and the public sector, with project teams that become increasingly multidisciplinary and dynamic. KAAN Architecten maintains a culture of constant evolution, which is essential in a profession that changes at a rapid pace. KAAN Architecten seeks to uphold long-term relationships with its clients, consultants and partners.
KAAN Architecten’s projects transcend the traditional notion of scale and typology, ranging from furniture and interiors to urban development and from retail and offices to museums and buildings for health and education.
Selection of completed projects:
2017, B30 – Bezuidenhoutseweg 30, The Hague (NL)!
2016, De Bank – new KAAN Architecten’s office, Rotterdam (NL)
2016, Supreme Court of the Netherlands, The Hague (NL)!
2015, Provinciehuis of North-Brabant, ‘s-Hertogenbosch (NL)
2013, Dreamhouse, Rotterdam (NL)!
2013, Education Center Erasmus MC, Rotterdam (NL)!
2010, District Water Board Brabantse Delta, Breda (NL)
!2008, Crematorium Heimolen, Sint Niklaas (BE)!
2004, Netherlands Forensic Institute, The Hague
KAAN Architecten ©Casper Rila
