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Poortgebouw

Logo: poortgebouw.org3

Monumental legalised squat in Rotterdam, the Netherlands

The Poortgebouw is a national monument located at Stieltjesstraat 38 in the Kop van Zuid area of Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It was built beside the River Maas in 1879 and experienced a range of uses until it was squatted 3 October 1980. It had been standing empty for 2 years and was squatted as a protest intended to highlight the lack of affordable residential housing in Rotterdam.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1879Founded1

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Rotterdam stieltjesstraat27,38-poortgebouw
Photo: Wikifrits, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons5

The Poortgebouw is a national monument located at Stieltjesstraat 38 in the Kop van Zuid area of Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It was built beside the River Maas in 1879 and experienced a range of uses until it was squatted 3 October 1980. It had been standing empty for 2 years and was squatted as a protest intended to highlight the lack of affordable residential housing in Rotterdam.2

The story

The Poortgebouw was originally planned as one of two identical buildings separated by water and guarding the narrow entrance to the Binnenhaven, part of the original port of Rotterdam. It is a monumental four storey brick building, with two wings and connecting floors which span the road beneath. It was intended to be the administrative headquarters of Rotterdamsche Handelsvereniging, but when the owner (L.Pincoffs) went bankrupt and fled to the United States of America the second building was not built. Later a smaller version was constructed, only to be demolished in 1937.

By the late 1970s, the building was derelict and there were unpopular plans to make it into an eroscentrum or large bordello.

When the Poortgebouw was squatted, the intention was to use the building as living space and a youth centre. After much negotiation with the city council, it was agreed in 1982 that the squatters could stay as a housing association (Vereniging Poortgebouw). They would pay a low rent and undertook to maintain the inside of the building. The first rent contract was signed in May 1984.

From Wikipedia’s article on Poortgebouw, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Timeline

  1. 1879Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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    Company websitePoortgebouw logo
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