Market hall, Rotterdam

On 18 November 2009, the mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb, and city councillor Hamit Karakus officially started the construction of the new Rotterdam Market Hall. The arched building located in the centre of Rotterdam, developed by Provast and designed by MVRDV, is a hybrid of public market and apartment building. Completion is set for 2014. Total investment is 175 million euro with a total surface of 100,000 m².

At the place where Rotterdam was founded, near the historic Laurens Church, the Market Hall will be realized as a new urban typology. The Market Hall is a sustainable combination of food, leisure, living and parking – fully integrated to enhance and use the synergetic possibilities of the different functions, a public building emerging from housing.

An arch of 228 apartments, of which 102 will be for rent, will create a large hall which houses 100 market stalls, shops and restaurants, 1200 parking spaces and an underground supermarket. The apartments will all have a balcony on the outside and a window to the inside of the market. Insulation will prevent any unwanted effects. The 40-meter-tall and -wide opening of the front and back will be covered with a flexible, suspended glass facade, allowing for maximum transparency and a minimum of structure. The interior of the arch will display market produce.

The project is set to be completed in 2014, and is part of the current regeneration of Rotterdam's post-war centre. Project developer Provast will realize the building, Unibail Rodamco has invested in the shops and restaurants, while the housing corporation Vesteda will manage the rental apartments, making the building a socially integrated part of the city.