Het Slaakhuis

Het Slaakhuis, or Slaakhuys, was a squat in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, based in the former offices of the socialist newspaper Het Vrije Volk. The building is a six-storey office block located on a street called Slaak and was squatted in May 2003.[1]

Slaakhuis
The Slaakhuis office block
Alternative namesSlaakhuys
General information
Statushotel, supermarket, ex music venue, ex social centre, ex squat, ex newspaper offices
TypeHotel
AddressSlaak 34, Rotterdam
CountryNetherlands
Coordinates
Opened2003 (squatted)
Renovated2017
OwnerHet Vrije Volk (original)
Design and construction
ArchitectJ.J.M. Vegter, P.A. Leupen

Construction

The building was designed by Jo Vegter in collaboration with Pieter Arend Leupen. It was built between 1954 and 1956. Behind the offices (which included a bookshop and a travel agency) was the printworks and two company residences.[2]

Snooker Centre

From the 1990s onwards, the Netherlands' largest snooker centre was based in the Slaak complex. Snooker greats such as Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O'Sullivan played there. In 2007 the centre was closed and it was later squatted.[3]

Activities

Initially when squatted the space hosted film nights, workshops, parties and a cafe. There was a free shop and lessons were taught in Dutch and kung fu. It also hosted a shop from WORM on the ground floor.

Recent news

From 2006 onwards, the squatters were in negotiation with the owner (PWS) and the city council about the Slaakhuis being used as the base for a community art education project. It was declared a national monument.[4] In 2011, the squatters were evicted from the office block and from the snooker centre a few months later. The office block was renovated into a luxury hotel and the snooker centre became a LIDL supermarket in 2017.[2][5]

See also

References
  1. "Landelijke kraakdag in Rotterdam (persbericht)". squat.net (Press release) (in Dutch).
  2. "Het Vrije Volk office building (Slaakhuys)". wederopbouwrotterdam.
  3. "Snookercentrum sluit deuren in Slaakhuys". AD/Rotterdams Dagblad. Rotterdam. 2007-08-15. Archived from the original on 2019-03-20. Retrieved 2019-03-21.
  4. http://rijksmonumenten.nl/monument/530859/slaakhuys/rotterdam/
  5. Onnink, Gert (2017-11-13). "Het Slaakhuys wordt luxe hotel". AD/Rotterdams Dagblad. Rotterdam. Retrieved 2019-03-21.
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