Delftse Poort

The Rotterdam building called Delftse Poort was designed by Abe Bonnema in a realistic architectural style and was opened in 1991.

The name Delftse Poort refers to a city gate with the same name that used to be nearby.

It consists of two box-shaped towers of different heights; one is 151 meters tall and the other is 93 meters tall. The tallest tower has 41 floors. The construction of the building cost 182 million euros. It was the tallest building in the Netherlands from 1991 to 2005.

On the ground floor, there is a public eating area, free flexible workspaces, a meeting center, a public gym, and free Wi-Fi. The Nationale Nederlanden Douwe Egbert Cafe is found on the ground level. The building also has parking for 620 cars and 250 bicycles. More than 2,000 people work inside.

History of Delftse Poort

In 1963, the two largest life insurance companies in the Netherlands, Nationale Levensverzekerings-Bank in Rotterdam and De Nederlanden van 1845 in The Hague, merged to form Nationale-Nederlanden. Nationale was headquartered in Rotterdam, first on Boompjes and later in Schiekade after the war.

After establishing a joint headquarters in The Hague in 1969, the “Schade” division was concentrated there while the “Leven” division remained in Rotterdam.

Due to the company’s growth, there was a shortage of office space in the company’s existing buildings in Rotterdam, leading to the decision to build a large new office. Nationale Nederlanden acquired the land on Avenida Weena and Stationsplein for construction.

The design by architect Abe Bonnema was chosen through a closed competition in 1986, involving five architects. The commission called for two separate office buildings with a total area of 36,000 and 24,000 square meters, respectively.

In 2015, the office building was renovated and opened to the public for the first time. The owners, CBRE Global Investors and KanAm, decided to transform the building into a meeting place for businesses, entrepreneurs, and the public.

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