A variety of housing types in a healthy, nature-inclusive environment

The name Lloyd Yard wasn’t chosen at random. Lloyd is a direct reference to the area’s industrial history, and Yard refers to the development’s ambition to create a genuine sense of community among its residents with the help of a communal courtyard garden, the Maas window and shared roofs, which will include a vegetable garden and a rooftop greenhouse. Lloyd Yard will offer a variety of housing types with spacious private outdoor areas in a healthy and inclusive environment. Among the elements supporting these provisions will be multifunctional roofs designed to accommodate energy generation, the capture and channelling of rainwater, and organic farming/vegetable gardens, and to serve as venues for socialising and relaxing. Meanwhile, facades promise to boast biodiversity-enhancing vegetation. In short, Lloyd Yard is destined not only to be a stylish place of rugged manmade and natural beauty, but also a healthy one for both people and wildlife. Ideal for urban dwellers who appreciate the raw character of this unique part of Rotterdam.

A home for all stages of life

Rotterdam is increasingly attracting people with wildly different housing needs, and Lloyd Yard is set to help meet this demand. The development will consist of six residential blocks with a combined total of about 135 homes and ten self-build plots. These blocks will be linked by façades of geometric design and raw-looking material. The combination of alternating façades and dynamic window frames will help convey the variety of the housing types within.
Mid-market rental accommodation will be situated on the Kratonkade, overlooking the Schiehaven harbour. Owner-occupied homes with an average size of no less than 120 m² will be built along the Lloydkade, allowing their occupants to overlook the Maas river. A street-level corner will be given over to food and drinks establishments, to give the place a bit of a buzz. Townhouses will be located on the western edge of the development, while the eastern edge will accommodate the self-build properties.

Apartments will boast sky-high ceilings and maisonettes will come with wood floors and large mezzanine levels, and the latter will be spacious and flexible enough to accommodate an extra room with little fuss should one be needed as a household expands.

Communal outdoor space

In addition to private gardens and green balconies, Lloyd Yard will include lots of inviting outdoor space for communal use. This will include a lush courtyard garden, the Maas window with its spectacular view of the Maas river, and a rooftop greenhouse and vegetable garden atop the block with the Maas window, from which residents can bask in the sun and in tranquillity, breathe in the fresh air, enjoy expansive views of the river below, and harvest fresh vegetables and herbs.

The courtyard garden will be accessible to all residents, and will contribute to their health and well-being by encouraging them to spend more time outdoors. All outdoor spaces will be communal and characterised by a mix of industrial elements and wild and abundant greenery — weathering steel structural elements spilling over with climbing plants such as European ivy, evergreens, roses and wisteria.

Buried deep in the site are remnants of its history. These will be identified with markers above ground, thereby linking the development to the site’s history. The courtyard garden’s greenery will consist of a combination of herb and flower-rich grass with ground cover plants between the semi-open paving. The garden will appear gloriously untamed from the vantage point of the rooftops, the Maas window and the surrounding buildings. Trees will be limited in number to avoid the obstruction of views from the buildings, and will be visible to passers-by outside the development, thereby conveying Lloyd Yard'ss green character to the world beyond.

A buzzing food and drinks corner

The corner of the Lloydkade and the Loods Celebes is set to be a buzzing, welcoming and hard-to-miss food and drinks spot that is appropriate to the taste and expectations of both residents and locals. This corner is destined to become the hotspot of the neighbourhood and a favourite place from which to enjoy the development’s riverside location.

A healthy environment for all

Rotterdam is aiming to improve the quality of life in the city by, among other things, reducing CO2 emissions, improving air quality, reducing noise pollution, strengthening its economy, and making the city a healthier and more attractive place to be. Lloyd Yard will play a part in the city’s achievement of its sustainability ambitions by its commitment to energy neutrality and conformity to the principles of the circular economy, its focus on sustainable transport and (construction) logistics, its incorporation of climate adaptation measures, and by its existence as a healthy and green biodiversity-promoting environment.