Amsterdam confirmed plans this week to build an entire neighborhood out of wood, a renewable material that the region hopes will be key in reducing building emissions. 

The new quarter, dubbed the first such neighborhood in a Dutch city in several centuries, reflects a broader commitment by municipalities in Greater Amsterdam in 2020 to ensure that at least 20% of new construction uses wood as its primary material by 2025. The move, the city argues, will do much to reduce the emissions of the construction sector, and possibly provide a model for future wooden developments.

Named the Mandela Buurt (“Mandela neighborhood”) after the neighboring Nelson Mandela Park, the neighborhood would be located in the city’s south and is due to start construction in 2025. It will contain ten new apartment blocks, a primary school and social facilities, housing an estimated 2,100 residents in 700 new apartments. Crucially for a city experiencing a lack of available affordable housing, the new district’s social benefits will not be restricted to sustainable building materials. Located in a relatively low-income part of the city, 80% of the new neighborhood’s homes will be offered as public or affordable housing at lower than market rents, with people having lived in the area for six years or more given some priority access to tenancies.

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