In the clock tower… Wienke Bodewes
Blogs, General news
At the beginning of this year, Wienke took a seat in the bell tower of Capital C. He looked ahead to the year 2021, with the desire to bring back balance to our society. Although he is optimistic about the future, he is critical when it comes to certain developments in the real estate sector: “We have become used to following fashion trends in the areas of living and working, without any knowledge of data. However, we need to dig deeper for the real trends and set our own course based on data.”
Wienke Bodewes is chairman of Holland Property Plaza and has been active in the built environment for decades. His first earnings in the real estate sector took shape in the early years of urban renewal in Rotterdam, where many instruments were developed that we now take for granted. Since then, Wienke has meant a lot to the real estate sector, including developing high-profile area developments in his former position as CEO of Amvest and now as an advisor with his own company Bodewes & Bodewes.
Innovation, imagination & realism
When you ask Wienke what he finds important, his answer is: “the combination of realism, innovation and imagination”. These values are the common thread throughout his career, whether it is about new building methods, funds for elderly care or area developments. Good examples are the development of Duin in Almere and the inner-city area development Cruquius in Amsterdam.
Setting a course based on data
However, in recent years he has seen the balance between realism and imagination upset by a lack of solid knowledge. Wienke:
“A social development that bothers me is that many people in our industry and beyond are shouting things without knowledge of data. As long as it is trendy, anything is allowed.
Take the discussion about the housing market, for example; the knowledge of would-be economists, politicians and real estate gurus is often no deeper than a rain pond.” According to Wienke, this lack of knowledge is not only annoying but also dangerous. It results in measures that make the situation worse rather than better, such as the changes in the transfer tax, the obligation to self-occupy and the intervention in commercial rents. His critical advice, therefore, is to bring a new balance back into society and to set a course based on data, not fashion trends.
Investigating and testing
At Holland Property Plaza, he sees parties that take this advice to heart and enter into discussions about it. Not with the idea of having a monopoly on wisdom, but rather by investigating and testing. Wienke: “I have seen many cross-sector collaborations and initiatives develop at HPP, and that makes me a proud chairman. For me, the added value of Holland Property Plaza in the real estate sector is obvious. For example, HPP is able to connect market parties and government agencies at a very practical level.
More and more public parties, such as medium-sized cities, are joining HPP, which adds depth to the discussions – a real enrichment.
At the beginning of the year 2021, we invited a few of our decision-makers in the clock tower of Capital C Amsterdam to share their wishes and predictions for the year 2021. Every month we highlight one of them. Last month in the clock tower we heard more about the story of Wiggert Karreman (APF International). Watch the full video below.