From bulky concrete cistern to luxurious loft: the water tower of Assen is in the middle of a transition, which is literally and figuratively a tour de force. Although this still requires some imagination, because work is still going on in that concrete box on the three floors.
Actually, the Asser real estate owner Riemer van den Berg had already wanted to receive the first guests at a height of 35 meters this spring. But plagued by all kinds of technical teething problems, a shortage of building materials and missing lift parts, that is now a year later.
At the beginning of 2020, the real estate boss was ‘super proud’ that he had been chosen with his design plan from a hundred submissions by the selling party, water company WMD. He wanted to sell the drinking water supply from 1960, but only to someone who had a good plan for the future while preserving the tower. Van den Berg was then wildly enthusiastic to transform the concrete colossus into a unique place to spend the night, with a beautiful view of Assen and the surrounding area.
But after all the setbacks he encountered in the water tower adventure, that enthusiasm has been tempered somewhat. “I have mixed feelings now, if I’m honest. On the one hand, I’m still happy and proud to be able to do this special job, but the adventure is many times more challenging than I expected in advance.”
Three luxurious floors are being realized in the concrete drinking water tank, which once held half a million liters of drinking water. This concerns sports and games, a cinema, wellness, sleeping quarters and on top comes one living with comfortable couches and a kitchen, with the beautiful view as icing on the cake.
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