Potential WTC extension becomes overall masterplan study

This is according to the Deputy Mayor responsible for Zuidas, Victor Everhardt, in a letter sent to the City Council on 6 December 2021. The ambitions outlined for the planned extension work on the south of the complex, which we reported about in April 2021, will be included in this masterplan study. Although this means that the extension work on towers A and C will not be happening within the original timeframe, CBRE Investment Management (CBRE IM) is keen to stress that it still has confidence in Zuidas as a location for further programming in the years ahead. CBRE IM expects demand for office space to continue to grow.

Zuidasdok work area

CBRE IM’s original plan was to quickly extend towers A and C along the A10. Speed was of the essence, because a construction site within the Zuidasdok work area was needed to enable work on these two towers. Extension work needed to be completed before Zuidasdok commences work to construct the northern tunnel planned for the A10 Zuid. A joint study conducted by CBRE IM, Amsterdam and Zuidasdok showed that this was not feasible.

Online meeting

This year, procedures were set in place to enable the extension of the two towers, such as a revision of the zoning plan. In April 2021, an online meeting was also held for residents and other interested parties. Participants were informed about the plans’ impact on the surrounding neighbourhood in terms of building height, sunshine and visibility. Further information was also provided on programming, hospitality/catering, the use of the plinths (the areas on the ground floor), traffic and parking, public space, wind nuisance, disruption caused by building work and how the plans relate to Zuidasdok.

Wider context

In August 2021, the CBRE Advisory Board made a statement on the plans to expand the WTC. The Board said that it considered the scope of the project, combined with the impact of coronavirus and the tight schedule and deadline, to be too great a risk. Besides this, any new construction work on towers A and C would also need to be followed by work to update the B tower of the complex, which has also become outdated. All of this led to the conclusion to halt further work planning the demolition and new development prior to the construction of the northern A10 tunnel. Instead of that, the decision was made to look at the planned renovation in a broader context, taking the whole WTC complex into account. The masterplan study commissioned by CBRE IM is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2022.