REAL ESTATE SPECIAL ‘NO MAJOR CRISIS, BUT A NEW BALANCE’

Area developer AM has long played a key role in Zuidas’s transition to a mixed-use urban district. The company has developed residential properties including Summertime (in cooperation with Bouwinvest), OpZuid, Xavier and The George (all in partnership with BPD) and is currently working with Equity Estate on Crossover. Scheduled to be completed in the first half of this year, Crossover combines housing, workspaces and amenities. The housing consists of 120 social rental units, of which 60 for students and 60 for refugees with residence permits. The remaining space will accommodate offices, cafés and restaurants and social and civic services.

AM Board Chairman Ronald Huikeshoven is proud to have achieved a true mixeduse building in Crossover. “In the space of ten years, I’ve seen Zuidas grow into a successful district of Amsterdam”, he says. “The next step is more mixed-use buildings. That’s the future of real estate, because bringing a variety of functions together enlivens and heightens the appeal of locations. We always say that groundfloor space makes up 10% of the real estate but represents 90% of the value.”

Staying involved

Another jewel in AM’s portfolio is the socalled Bajeskwartier, a new quarter being developed on the site of the former Bijlmer penitentiary in close cooperation with AT Capital and Schroders Capital. It has been designed as a climate-neutral urban centre for which 98% of construction materials will come from the demolished prison, reusing everything down to the cell doors. This project is currently in full swing. Also, a foundation will be established for the benefit of public space and aims to give residents influence over the use, design and maintenance of public space. In doing so, AM will remain involved in Bajeskwartier for a longer period of time.

AM’s role doesn’t end after a location is ‘finished’. A year ago, the development company launched its own residential fund. “We want to stay involved and therefore retain ownership of areas we develop”, Ronald explains. “AM employs place-makers whose job it is to give areas an identity. They look at which uses can be accommodated there long or short-term, for instance urban farms or restaurants. They always start out by talking with local business owners. So, after spending eight to ten years developing an area, it would be a shame to completely leave it.”

New balance

Global economic and geopolitical turbulence in the years since 2020 has irrevocably rippled out to the real estate sector. Interest rates are going up, construction costs are high and building labourers are in short supply. But Ronald is not overly worried. “It’s clear the sector is in a holding pattern at the moment. Looking back over the past thirty years, interest is still low. We have to acclimate to the new situation and find a new balance in how we calculate risks and returns. That all takes time.”

The current economic uncertainty has however pushed real estate players to critically re-evaluate their activities, Ronald notes. To ask questions such as: are we building what the market actually needs? Are we making the right choices? To answer them, AM is seeking closer collaboration with their partners, including construction companies. “Their knowledge and expertise is instrumental to all our plans. They can offer immediate input on construction methods and which materials to use, for instance. In that sense, these challenges are themselves leading to innovations, and that’s positive.”

Chief architect

Of course, the need to find a new balance doesn’t imply concessions can be made in real estate quality.

AM has high ambitions when it comes to big societal issues surrounding sustainability, quality of the living environment and health. In fact, it appoints a chief architect – similar to the chief government architect appointed by the Dutch Housing Ministry – every three years for this very purpose. This is a real estate expert unaffiliated with AM who oversees projects to keep them in line with the company’s high ambitions and challenges to keep innovating. Recently, Daan Zandbelt - urban planner, architect and partner at De Zwarte Hond - was introduced as AM’s new chief architect.

When asked what he would do if he were chief architect of Zuidas, Ronald knows exactly what his priorities would be: more mixed-use, of course, but also more housing for seniors and more public amenities. “A museum or a library would really add a lot to this area. Also, there are very few senior citizens living here. We call them ‘urban veterans’. This is a target group that benefits tremendously from these sorts of public amenities, and that would make Zuidas an even more successful mixed urban district.”