On Sunday, April 13th, the ‘We Are Here‘ group occupied three empty spaces on Ten Katestraat 49, 61 and 63 in Amsterdam: ‘De VluchtMarkt’. The project will house a group of undocumented women who have been without shelter since last week. The neighbourhood and local politicians have shown their support, because they prefer to see the properties in good use rather than empty.
Ten Katestraat 61 and 63 used to be social houses owned by Rochdale, who started the demolition process to convert them into luxury apartments. Due to the financial crisis the renovation project has not been completed and, as is the case with many other Rochdale properties, the houses have been empty for years. The buildings are part of a larger block of houses including 53, 55 and 57 which, in the past had been squatted and evicted twice, and at the moment are still empty and rotting. [Read More]
