Room for 4,500 more homes on Amsterdam city center rooftops

Amsterdam can create over 4,500 additional homes by building extra floors on top of roofs in the city center, according to a study by the Centrum district. It found approximately 350,000 square meters of roof space available for topping up, Parool reports.

The study aimed to explore “the opportunities for densifying the city center,” district manager Lotte Terwel told Parool. “With this inventory, we are making visible where the opportunities lie for building in the historic city center.”

The researchers looked for the most promising options for topping up buildings, considering things like location and whether the buildings are owned by corporations or owners’ associations. They also looked at the typology of the construction, excluding things like the Unesco area in the canal belt.

That brought them to 700,000 square meters of roof space. Things like sloping corners and other practical limitations cut that by half, resulting in 350,000 square meters of available roof space. “With an average gross floor area of 75 square meters per home, this will provide space for approximately 4,666 homes.”

How many homes will actually be created in this way depends on many factors, including the willingness of homeowners and whether the existing structures and their foundations are strong enough. According to the district, it will be a matter of customization, but knowing the potential is the first step.