Amsterdam-Zuid is the
borough of
Amsterdam situated to the south and southwest of the
Singelgracht canal, along the
Stadhouderskade city ring road. It is bordered by the
Vondelpark in the northwest, the
Westlandgracht canal in the west, the
Amstel river in the east and the
Kalfjeslaan in the south, which also forms the border with the municipality of
Amstelveen. in the
Museumkwartier business district The
Singelgracht canal had been Amsterdam's city border since the 17th century, when the
Amsterdam canal belt was constructed. The taking down of the wall surrounding the
Singelgracht, the outer canal, in the second half of the 19th century allowed for the
development of new residential areas. South of the former wall, the first neighborhoods to develop were the
Oude Pijp neighborhood, the neighborhood surrounding the
Rijksmuseum, and the
Willemspark neighborhood. This area is now also known as
Oud Zuid ('Old South'). In 1917, the area was further developed southwards on the basis of
Plan Zuid, the ambitious urban expansion plan designed by
Dutch architect and city planner
Hendrik Petrus Berlage. Berlage's plan included wide streets lined with four-story apartment blocks for the middle class. The plan also included
public art to be installed in the new residential areas. Between 1920 and 1940, the
Plan Zuid neighborhoods of
Nieuwe Pijp,
Diamantbuurt,
Rivierenbuurt,
Stadionbuurt and
Apollobuurt were constructed, with many buildings designed in
Amsterdam School style. This area is also known as
Nieuw Zuid ('New South'). Another neighborhood built in the 1920s is the
Hoofddorppleinbuurt, west of the
Schinkel river. This neighborhood is part of
Plan West, another urban expansion plan by Berlage which was designed for the western area of the city on the territory of the former municipality of
Sloten. In the 1950s and 1960s, the
Buitenveldert neighborhood and the smaller
Prinses Irenebuurt became the last major residential developments in the southern part of the city. In 1961, the
Amsterdam RAI Exhibition and Convention Centre opened, which was to become the largest convention centre in the
Netherlands. The
A10 motorway, which runs through the southern borough, was constructed in 1962. In 1978, the first section of the
Weesp–Leiden railway and the
Amsterdam Zuid railway station opened along the southern part of the A10 motorway. In the 1990s and 2000s, the area surrounding the railway station became the rapidly developing business district of
Zuidas. ==Borough government==