Westhove

At the start of the twentieth century, Dutch building regulations placed severe restrictions on high-rises. The maximum number of storeys in Amsterdam was four. Not surprisingly then, plans for high-rise buildings never left the drawing-board. The general public was not in favour of high-rises and cherished the ideal of the detached house with a private piece of land.

F.A. (Philip Anne) Warners (1888-1952) was a true pioneer of the multi-storeyed house in Amsterdam during the interwar period. The ‘multi-storeyed house’ offered distinct advantages through communal facilities, and more luxury and comfort than the average private house. The multi-storeyed houses did away with the cramped entrance lobby, gloomy corridor, the tiny kitchen and the steep staircases of their counterparts. They also provided ample store rooms and storage space for fuel. were absent. Warners dealt with these restrictions in his new The multi-storeyed houses would facilitate a more modern, more efficient way of life because of their labour-saving layout and the use of electrical equipment that would reduce the time spent on housekeeping…