Parking garages in the Amsterdam neighbourhood of Bijlmermeer stood empty because they lacked surveillance and were socially unsafe. From the road a gloomy deserted appearance dominated, confirming the negative image of this residential area. Following a suggestion by the supervising architectural committee the owner, the municipal Parking Authority, organized a competition for a selected group of architects.

The chosen design calls for three floors of commercial use at the front of the garage buildings along the main thoroughfare Daalwijkdreef. This provides small businesses with modestly priced office space. The outer walls consist of glass panels glued into metal frames thus connecting with the existing garage curtain wall of matted glass. Sturdy awnings and advertising masts determine the new look from the road. The masts display the buildings’ names, which are also sand-blasted on the glass at the corners.

Cheerful colours distinguish the buildings from each other and turn the road into a strip.

The buildings have a central hall and a ramp to the lower ground floor. The existing wall profile has an infill of new vertical window strips. A canopy, a bridge and an advertising mast have been added.

In 1999 the then urban district chairperson, Hannah Belliot, presented Hans van Heeswijk with the quality prize for this project.