When you cross the pedestrian bridge of the Rijnhaven you have a simultaneous view on the Rijnhaven and on the Kop van Zuid. The Rijnhaven is one of the oldest harbours of the south part of Rotterdam, and was constructed around 1890. As of 2015 the last docks for inland ships have disappeared, although the harbour lost its function of transhipment port years before that.

The municipality of Rotterdam is planning to transform the Rijnhaven into a part of the city centre, which includes building 2.000-2.500 houses in high-rise apartment buildings up to 250 metres. On street-level small-scale businesses and restaurants will be situated. It also includes the creation of 6,5 acres of park designed by landscape designers Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (together with OKRA and TAUW).

This design keeps the original quays intact. The design consists of the creation of floating parks connected by walkways and a city beach. However it still remains a question if the beach can be used for swimming, because of the tides in the harbour and the water quality. The costs of these plans amount to a total of 57,5 million euros, at the moment the most expensive project that the city has. An overview of the plans can be seen in the video below.

Brain Teaser
How do you compare the quality of these plans to the costs?

Sources
Gemeente Rotterdam. (2018). Masterplein Rijnhaven. https://archief12.archiefweb.eu/archives/archiefweb/20200816090819/http:/www.rotterdam.nl/wonen-leven/rijnhaven/Masterplan-Rijnhaven.pdf

Van Helleman, J. (2022, March 15). Rijnhaven ontwikkeling – schetsontwerp Rijnhavenpark goedgekeurd – Nieuwbouw Architectuur Rotterdam. Nieuwbouw Architectuur Rotterdam. https://nieuws.top010.nl/rijnhaven-gebiedsontwikkeling.htm

Michael van Valkenburgh Associates Inc. (n.d.). Rijnhavenpark. https://mvvainc.com/projects/rijnhavenpark