www.stadsherstel.com

Van Raderstraat 9 - 23

Function: community projects and student housing

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Two features make this building unique in Curacao: it is the only example of a gatehouse and it is the first known apartment building on the island. The property is situated at the westernmost part of the Plasa Herman Leyba in Scharloo Abou.

Based from the building material used (concrete containing finger coral) it must have been constructed in the twenties or at the beginning of the thirties of the 20th century. The two-storied building consisted of eight small apartments, four on each side of the big entrance gate. On either side was an indoor stairway, each serving two of the four dwellings on the first floor. Initially behind the building there was a wooden structure that probably contained the kitchens and the bathrooms, as these are not situated in the main building itself.

Stadsherstel bought the property in 1998 and executed the restoration in 2007. The ground floor will be used for community projects, whereas on the first floor the original four apartments were transformed into three larger dwellings to meet present day requirements.