The jury of the MIPIM / Architectural Review Future Award has selected the Rotterdam residential building SAWA to be a highly commended, in the Residential category. The building is designed by Mei architects and planners, commissioned by Nice Developers and ERA Contour. After the first prize of the ARC20 Innovation Award last year and winning the international Green Good Design Award in April this year, this is the third time SAWA has been honoured for its exceptionally innovative ambitions and sustainable qualities.
“A stand-out building in Rotterdam docks visually for its green appearance, and socially for its programme and approach to sustainability”
– jury MIPIM / AR Future Project Award
Spanning 12 categories, the MIPIM/Architectural Review Future Project Awards are the only international awards that exclusively celebrate excellence in projects at design or early construction stage. The renowned international jury does not just focus on design, but also on how these future projects will contribute to society in their wider context.
In 2019, Mei architects and planners also won the MIPIM/Architectural Review Future Project Awards with the transformation of the monumental dockyard warehouse Fenix I, in the Old & New category.
The MIPIM/Architectural Review Future Project Awards are organised and awarded annually by the MIPIM, the international property market in Cannes, France, in cooperation with the monthly international magazine Architectural Review. MIPIM 2021 will take place on 7-8 September 2021 as the MIPIM September Edition in Cannes.
Healthiest building in the Netherlands
SAWA is a unique 50m-high all-wooden residential building, which contributes to biodiversity by integrating abundant greenery and perennial plants into the design, is accessible to various income groups, and where people care for each other and for nature.
With this ‘healthiest building in the Netherlands’, a place is created that adds value to the neighborhood, by stimulating communities, a common deck, shared facilities, and connection with existing local initiatives. The future residents are actively involved in the development of SAWA and participation meetings are regularly organized. The official sale is scheduled around the summer of this year. The aim is to start construction of SAWA by the end of 2021.
Team of experts
Mei architects and planners designs SAWA for Nice Developers and TBI company ERA Contour. In recent decades, Mei has built up a proven track record when it comes to designing and realizing innovative living concepts and valuable communities, based on shared values, both at home and abroad. After the monumental Fenix I warehouse, with which the office won no less than 11 architecture prizes, SAWA is the next promising project by Mei in Rotterdam.
SAWA is developed and designed with an extensive team of experts, including Pieters Bouwtechniek, DERIX, Pirmin Jung, Ralph Hamerlinck, DGMR, Atto Harsta, Piet Vollaard, Bureau Stadsnatuur en Copijn. De Wijde Blik Communicatie and Kettner Makelaardij are involved in the promotion and sale of the apartments in SAWA.