New city hall in Gouda celebrates reaching the highest point

Huis van de Stad, Gouda’s new city hall, reached the highest point of 43 metres on Saturday, 27 August 2011.
Mayor Wim Cornelis: ‘I am very proud of the new city hall. This will be a place where the citizens of Gouda can come for municipal services, join the political debate and meet the people that make our municipality work. The builders are working hard and construction is on schedule.’ The mayor expects the new city hall to open to the public on 4 June 2012.

Gouda’s new city hall is part of the railway zone redevelopment, whereby the city centre is being extended to the north of the railway line. The architecture of the city hall remembers Gouda’s past while at the same time blending in perfectly with the 21st century city. Traditional elements such as red brickwork and white door and window frames highlight the facade, while the building’s shape harmonises with the large rectangular buildings in the nearby area. The brickwork was not laid in traditional patterns, but rather in prefabricated diagonal bands across the building. The diagonal theme reflects both the old and the new city and also refers to a typical symbol of Gouda, the treacle waffle, which is where the nickname ‘De Stroopwafel’ comes from. The building’s design is classical and, together with the diagonal patterns and the perfect rectangular volume, it is reminiscent of Doge’s Palace in Venice.