Tower II Terrace on the Maas, Spijkenisse

'None one-on-one copy'

Ten years ago, a luxury, 100-meter-high residential tower was built in Spijkenisse; Terrace on the Maas I. Construction of a second, similar tower was postponed due to the economic crisis. In 2018, the construction of Terrace on the Maas II was still started. The structural work is now almost complete. The project is a development from VOF Dijkzone and is being executed by VORM.

Both towers are located on the banks of the Oude Maas River and are real eye-catchers with their whimsical shape, large balconies and beautiful facade finishes that include natural stone. Harold Clabbers, senior project developer at VORM, explains that the towers have a similar appearance and are also being built in an almost identical way. "But they are not one-to-one copies; there is a difference in the details. Anyway, at 70 meters, tower B is lower than tower A, which is 100 meters high. Moreover, we are ten years ahead. Certain aspects are tailored to today's regulations, although in 2010 the plans were already very progressive and we didn't have to adjust much."

At 70 meters, Tower B is lower than Tower A, which is 100 meters high.

Whereas tower A, completed in 2013, still contains commercial space, tower B consists entirely of apartments. Both purchase and rental in the social, middle and partly higher segment. "This is in accordance with the agreement with the housing corporation, which nowadays is only allowed to focus on social housing construction. We are thus partly meeting the demand for rental housing in the social rental segment. We have done market research on that." Clabbers explains that Stichting Humanitas, as with Tower A, can also provide customized care at home for the homes in Tower B. "So the homes are also very suitable for people with care needs who can still live independently."

Areas of excellence

Because the entire permit process had already been taken care of during the preparations for the construction of Tower A, less time had to be spent on that now. Clabbers: "As I said, we looked at the current building requirements and made certain adjustments on that basis. All the more so because this project belongs to the Excellent areas at the time of the total development of Tower A and Tower B, exemplary areas with a lot of attention to energy-efficient new construction. The new tower will include a heat recovery system. In addition, Tower B will be connected to the already completed collective heat and power installation." He says that in terms of comfort in the apartments, there is regular consultation with the VvE, which is already active for Tower A. "Because both towers will fall under one main VvE in the future."

Both towers are located on the banks of the Old Meuse River.

Just-in-time

The construction of tower B is now in full swing. With the pouring of a final tunnel, the structural work is almost complete; the finishing work has now started. Pointing to the differences in construction methods, Clabbers cites the different soil conditions at Tower B as an example. He goes on to say that the construction site does not offer much space, so deliveries are mostly made just-in-time. "As far as logistics are concerned, of course we have to take into account the safety in the area. That was carefully considered when establishing the supply routes." Another challenge is the influence of the wind on the construction cranes, among other things. "As a result, we had several days of wind damage. In addition, the coronavirus is playing a role. It is difficult to get enough personnel now."

Still, construction is proceeding fairly on schedule, Clabbers indicates. "We expect to deliver the first phase by the end of the year and finalize it during the first quarter of 2021."