het Park Pavilion is one of the ten nominees for the 2026 Rotterdam Architecture Prize, alongside other notable buildings such as Fenix, SAWA, and the Steeds Hooger Sports Pavilion. Each year, the prize shines a spotlight on the city’s best new buildings. This independent award honors the most successful projects with a Professional Jury Prize and a People’s Choice Award. The winners are announced during Rotterdam Architecture Month; the prizes are awarded to the entire team, including the client, designer, and builder.

Thanks to the recent renovation of het Park—Rotterdam’s largest green national monument—designed by father and son Zocher, the pavilion has once again come into the spotlight. The building, which in its previous incarnation served as a shed for the city’s parks and recreation department, continues to contribute to het Park’s daily maintenance even in its new form. But above all, the space is being returned to the people of Rotterdam as a haven for human well-being. A place you can visit without having to consume anything. An open space for encounters between people, culture, and het Park’s natural environment. Everyone is welcome here to become part of the community, to rest, to recharge, to experience, to meet others, or to actively help out by volunteering in het Park. A place where visitors, volunteers, gardeners, and staff—whether in heels, slippers, sneakers, or mud boots—move through the seasons and, literally navigating between wheelbarrows, rakes, and hoes, work together to care for het Park.