Living and Leisure Special

A topic that has been on many people’s minds these past few years is home life and personal lifestyle. These things have always been important, of course, but they became especially pertinent while we were all stuck at home and had to find different ways to spend our time. What makes for pleasant physical environments, and what can cities do to enhance them? Marijke Ris grew up in the Netherlands’ port city and has been the manager of its gateway, Rotterdam Central Station, since 2015. For her, a pleasant living environment above all has to be safe, green and lively. Which is precisely what she is working to create.

LIVING & LEISURE INTRO

WITH MARIJKE RIS

ROTTERDAM CENTRAL STATION MANAGER

YOU WERE BORN AND RAISED IN ROTTERDAM. HOW WOULD YOU CHARACTERIZE LIVING HERE?

“Rotterdam has changed for the better in so many ways in recent years, and I’m incredibly proud of that. Growing up, I lived in Alexanderpolder, a very green area just outside the Kralingse Bos. It was a wonderful time. I always biked through the woods into town and to my secondary school, the Libanonlyceum. Despite that, it still felt like a raw city. Rotterdam also has loads of places to go out, for nightlife, museums and other entertainment and attractions, which makes it a great city.”

WHAT DO YOU THINK MAKES A PLACE NICE TO LIVE? AND WHAT PLACES DO YOU ENJOY GOING?

“For me personally, what matters most is a safe physical environment. Being able to knock on a neighbour’s door if you need help. Beyond that, it’s really nice to have a green space where you can be active. Another must for me is having enough to do in the neighbourhood, so restaurants, fitness clubs, theatres. I like living near the city where everything is close by. And I think it’s nice for the kids that we live close to town. A place I still enjoy going in Rotterdam is the Kralingse Bos. The station is also a really amazing place to work, and I’ve rediscovered the Proveniers district, on the north side.”

ROTTERDAM CENTRAL STATION HAS UNDERGONE A COMPLETE METAMORPHOSIS AND NOW IS BEING TOUTED AS THE GATEWAY TO THE CITY. WHAT’S YOUR TAKE ON THIS?

“Rotterdam Central is a super important mobility hub. Everything comes together here: trains, buses, metro, trams, bike facilities, shared mobility and even the Eurostar that goes to central London three times a day. Tourists and people from other parts of the country arrive here, but so do people from Rotterdam itself. And then, from here, you follow the ‘red carpet’ into town. That really does make us the gateway to this city.”

WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT TO CREATE A SAFE AND PLEASANT ENVIRONMENT WITHIN ROTTERDAM CENTRAL?

“There are some basics you need in any building, obviously, and a lot of thought went into that when designing this station. It’s very transparent and spacious. We have great partnerships with our security partners, so law enforcement, the Public Prosecution Service, municipality, mayor’s office, NS, ProRail and RET, underpinned by the safety covenant we recently signed for another five years.”

WHAT’S BEING DONE IN AND AROUND THE STATION TO CREATE THIS ENVIRONMENT?

“We’re looking very closely at the diversity of retailers in the station. Our campaign promoting the station as ‘more than trains’ is also keyed to that. For instance, a lot of people don’t know that we have a library branch. We’re also trying to find temporary uses for vacant spaces with cultural institutions like Museum Rotterdam, as a way to connect city residents and visitors with parts of their collection and are offering studios for Rotterdam-based artists like Rosa Boomsma. We also have an event space in the main hall where we host Rotterdam Festivals programmes 26 weeks out of the year, to offer a taster here of festivals happening in the city.”

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH READERS OF RCD MAGAZINE?

“Come visit the station! You’ll be surprised at all the things going on here. There are tons of fun facts and hidden gems to discover.”