(For images, scroll down) On an open space, enclosed by a road junction (E40 motorway & N43 road), at the outskirts of Ghent, a 119m tall office building is soon to be erected. This project is part of a larger plan to turn the grounds of the former airfield of the city into a mix of a CBD and large scale retail development, which will be developed at the rate of the local property market and aims to be finished by 2030.



Location:

http://i44.tinypic.com/2r2n5go.jpg



Facts:


Sponsor: nv. Stasimo
Architect: Jaspers-Eyers & Partners, Brussels
Construction: 2010-2012
Completion: may 2012
Floors: 24 + 3
Total Height: 119 metres
Total Surface: 20.800 m²
Purpose: office
Varia:

A fire station will be integrated at the foot of the tower
Upon completion, it will become the tallest office building in the federal region of Flanders





Images:



http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_01.jpg



http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_02.jpg http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_03.jpg http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_04.jpg



http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_05.jpg http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_06.jpg



http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_07.jpg



http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_08.jpg http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_10.jpg

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_09.jpg

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_11.jpg



Film:



YT0Za2O7_X4





Detailed timing:


The rough shell of the building is due to be finished by april 2011
The granite facades will be installed from the beginning of 2011 until august of that year
The interior finish will start in the beginning of 2011 and is due to be completed by the end of the same year. After that starts a 4,5 month period for furnishing, painting, etc. of the interior
The complete finish of the building is scheduled for april 2012, when the building will be transferred from the contractor to KBC Bank, the end user.




Relevant Threads on other Forums:


GENT : MG Toren | 119m (hhttp://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1247543) 1 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=821662) 2 (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1247543) (at the Belgian Forum - lang.: Dutch)
GENT : The Loop (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=325883) (larger urban development - lang.: Dutch)




Most Recent Updates:


06-04-2011, by durexxx (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=75580115#post75580115)
18-04-2011, by Crocy (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=76281343#post76281343)
27-04-2011, door JumpV (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=76775741#post76775741)
30-04-2011, by Puinkabouter (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=77039493#post77039493)
14-06-2011, by JumpV (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=79663386#post79663386)

I the modern design. They have to build more highrises in ghent

I like it. Looking forward to ground breaking and the construction. :)

I love it! can't wait when it's finished...

Good tower. Not to big but has a good design.

I like it. Looking forward to ground breaking and the construction. :)

So that means it's not under construction yet. I'm going to change the title and move the thread until it's really under construction.

Construction has begun, although at this time it's not all too fascinating to watch yet. A couple of bulldozers and other machines have arrived on the site and work has started to either level the terrain or to dig out a big hole.

Update 20-02-2010:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_001.jpg

An overview.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_002.jpg

There are still a couple of remnants of the villas that used to stand here. On one piece of rubble that still stands, a notice is hanging out:



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_003.jpg

"Building Permit - Announcement:

<blablabla> has been given a building permit for a tower with offices for private administration, a base that houses general services and parking space, an access road underneath the E40 motorway exit, landscaping and a fire station"

:cheers:



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_004.jpg

So I paid a visit to the building grounds to see what's been going on the last couple of days. There were no workers present at the site, but that's because it was late on a saturday afternoon. But it's obvious a couple of excavators (and one bulldozer) have arrived on the site, and they've already done some digging.



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_005.jpg (http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_005_groot.jpg)
Click on the picture for a larger version

Panorama.



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_006.jpg

Looks like they've taken precautions in case the excavation buckets wear out quickly :D



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_007.jpg

Looks like a drill to me.



8.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_008.jpg

Don't really know what that is ^_^



9.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/02/mg_tower_2010-02-20_009.jpg

Anyway, powertools galore on this site since recently. Construction has actually started, although it won't be too interesting to watch in the first months to come, I suppose :)

One week ago today, there was a small event for the official first stone of this tower. This is a short item from a local TV station. Obviously, the comments and interviews are in Dutch, but it contains a couple of nice dynamic renderings:



YT0Za2O7_X4



With thanks to ForTheLoveOfHouse for recording the fragment and Dequal for putting it on Youtube!



A short summary of what's been told in this fragment:


The building was designed according to a 'green' concept: ao. not all-glass, in order to keep the energy inside.
It will be the tallest office building in the region, probably tall enough to see the nearest other major Belgian city (ie. Bruges) from the deck on the roof. Or at least, that's what they're hoping for...
Unlike other Belgian cities, that currently have an oversupply in office space (exceeding 10%), Ghent has close to no vacancies on the office property market. Therefor, this project is a big relief for the local authorities.
Other strategic plans for office space are still in the pipeline. Most notably a large-scale development close to the nearby main railway station (see topic (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1026105) (Be.forum - Dutch)).




And one last remark: the latest news has it that this tower will be a mere 119m tall. Setting it back two places in the ranking for tallest building in the region, after the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp (123m) and the Church of Our Lady in Bruges (122m).

For now we consider this to be the official height, although we slightly suspect that it has something to do with the choice of the Zero Level. It ought to be measured from street level, but I suspect the developer mentions the height from the top of the inclined plane that will be built in front of the building. We're still looking for clear technical drawings to give us closure on this :)

Saturday 08-05-2010:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-08-001.jpg

Overview.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-08-002.jpg

The terrain has turned into a modest construction pit.



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-08-003.jpg

Apparently the dirt is kept on the site, for now.



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-08-004.jpg

We'll be seeing a tower growing here in the following months. The cranes aren't a good indicator for the tower's height yet...



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-08-005.jpg

... because they're fitted with a climbing system.



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-08-006.jpg

One of the cranes can be seen above the trees at the nearby tram station. Soon this area, the former airfield, will turn into a more urban setting.



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-08-007.jpg

This is what it looks like from a departing tram. The left-most crane belongs to another construction project - low-rise condos.

Cool. This is officially U/C!

Great! Looking forward ro further progress.
Thanks for the updates Puinkabouter! :)

@Puinkabouter: I really like your style of photography :)

Great! Looking forward ro further progress.
Thanks for the updates Puinkabouter! :)

You're welcome. I will post all updates that I make in this thread as well as the thread in the Belgian section. I hope I will be able to do this on a monthly basis. Let it be known though, that there are more frequent photo-updates made by other members of this forum. Anyone who's curious for more regular updates can subscribe to the original thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=821662)! :)

@Puinkabouter: I really like your style of photography :)

Thank you :)

If you like to see more, I have a flickr photo page (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tuinkabouter/), and I upload all my photo updates for this forum to this page on Majhost (http://www.majhost.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?m=Puinkabouter).

Great photos! I added you as a contact :)

^^ I reciprocated :)

A new update - sunday 30-05-2010, when the construction site was open to the public:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-001.jpg (http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-001_groot.jpg)
Click the image for a larger version

An overview of the entire construction site.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-002.jpg

It's one big pit at the moment - hardly visible in the last update. It's certainly not a small thing. At the center of this pit we can see a few columns.



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-003.jpg

These columns seem to stand in the corners of what seems to become a square base. I wonder if that will be the place above which the actual tower will be built.



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-004.jpg

A part of the bottom of the pit is already covered with a concrete slab.



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-005.jpg

Seeing all this reinforcement steel, I suppose that slab will still be growing to much larger proportions in the weeks to come.



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-006.jpg

We descend to level -1, where the parking garage is being built.



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-007.jpg

On the way to the site's hotspot, we pass underneath the tallest crane, which I estimate is at the half of the height it will eventually need to have.



8.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-008.jpg

With some people in the picture you can get a clearer image of the size of these (prefabricated) columns.



9.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-009.jpg

The wharf is extending in the direction of the local Ikea store as well.



10.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-010.jpg

A prefabricated column awaits its installation, while not so far behing it a big pile of dirt is still waiting to be removed from the site and behind it a machine is still working on drilling foundation poles into the soil.



11.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-011.jpg

Another overview of the site.



12.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/05/mg-toren-2010-05-30-012.jpg

This will be a funny view in the future: all but one of the small houses within the motorway exit have been bought up and demolished to make place for this highrise and its green plaza. This one still remains, and will soon be totally dwarfed by its new neighbour. Quite stupid, really...



I will add more details I learned about the timing to the opening post in a moment.

i like the desing

Nice tower! Is it near the highway in the direction of Calais?

Yep, it's right next to the E40 motorway (Calais-Brussels-Aachen), which is visible on pictures 1, 6, 8 and 11. It's actually enclosed by an exit of that motorway onto one of the main roads into the city - as you can see in the opening post of this thread :)

Update from yesterday, thursday 22-07-2010:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-001.jpg

As usual, we start the update with a view from the emergency exit of the Ikea store.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-002.jpg

When we try to take a closer look, we can see a part of the construction site luring behind the trees. It should become a lot more visible somewhere in the next couple of months, of course.



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-003.jpg

Part of the site is still a big pit.



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-004.jpg

Moonscape...



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-005.jpg

At the opposite side of the site, there's a mock-up of the future facade of this building.



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-006.jpg

The first concrete beams have been put into place that will become the green slope to the main entrance.



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-007.jpg

On the way to the far end of the site, I encountered these red steel things sticking out above the rest. Maybe they indicate the place where the tower core will appear, but I'm not sure.



8.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-008.jpg

That's the closest to the mock-up I could get. Of course, the renderings and the eventuel reality show some differences. The material - this we already knew at our local forum - isn't perfectly white, but it's a light gray granite. It still looked quite bright in the shadow so I'm pretty sure it will look almost white when the sun hits the building.

There will also be lines in the facade which weren't shown in the renderings either, unless they have some kind of material in store to seal the gaps off.



9.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-009.jpg

The tower will be rented out to the Belgian bank KBC. They will dethrone their competitors Dexia along this road by spring of 2012 :)



10.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-010.jpg

The MG Tower site is at the edge of the former airfield of Ghent, which is now the location of "Flanders Expo", one of the biggest exhibition halls in Belgium. When you leave the those halls through their main exit, the new tower will be quite undeniable.

The terrain between this place and the Ikea store will also be built up by 2013, with a bunch of outlet stores and probably also a movie theatre and two smaller office towers.



11.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-011.jpg

The view from the underpass underneath the "Pégoudlaan" (Pégoud Ave.), the main traffic axis of the site that used to be the landing strip of the airfield.



12.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/07/mg-toren-2010-07-22-012.jpg

The masterplan for the former airfield zone foresees a series of midrises and smaller highrises along this avenue in the future (by 2025-2030). A part of this road will also be built over.

This will become a nice landmark. :)

It seems like the core is making its first shy attempt to rise:


http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4136/4922740725_c98afe398b_z.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4922741565_de611ea191_z.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4101/4926294614_ea5f4e21dc_b.jpg

This is going to be amazing when its finished!

It's going pretty fast now.

1. Panorama picture of the site. Click it for larger resolution (15mb).
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/panothumb.jpg (http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/pano.jpg)

2. The core is rising
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/p1.jpg

3.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/p2.jpg

4.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/p3.jpg

I saw the the cranes a couple of days ago when driving passed it on the beltway. It's gonna take a while before it's visible from the highway

I saw the the cranes a couple of days ago when driving passed it on the beltway. It's gonna take a while before it's visible from the highway

It can go fast now, but we'll see in a few weeks.

cant wait to see it rising :D

^^ The core has risen by one level already. Update of sunday 05-09-2010:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/09/mg-toren-2010-09-05-001.jpg

Overview of the entire construction site. It's taken from behind a mobile phone shop, the only other building on the grounds enclosed by the motorway exit. It's going to be a stupid sight seeing those two sharing this location.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/09/mg-toren-2010-09-05-002.jpg

The core has now risen above what will become the ground level in the future, as there is an inclined platform U/C between the tower and the road.



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/09/mg-toren-2010-09-05-003.jpg



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/09/mg-toren-2010-09-05-004.jpg



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/09/mg-toren-2010-09-05-005.jpg (http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/09/mg-toren-2010-09-05-005-groot.jpg)

Click on the picture for a huge version on which you can zoom in.



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/09/mg-toren-2010-09-05-006.jpg

View from the new beltway of "The Loop", the former airfield turned into development zone for office and retail, of which the MG Tower is in fact the first major office development. It's somewhat inspired by La Défense, but obviously on a much, much smaller scale.

nice lights!

So there will be more highrises in this district and not just MG Toren surrounded by flat warehouse-style shops, do you know rougly the heights of other towers, they don't look so tall on the models :) Is there a train station planned aswell?

^^ The models are only relevant to the zones they illustrate, and for the most part only illustrate a general concept, not an actual plan. There's a masterplan for the area with a couple of binding rules. On most of the zones directly west of the central avenue, at least one building is required to have between 15 and 27 levels. So that's a minimum of around 60m, and a maximum of ... (?, probably around 120 tops).

It's not going to be a blitz development though. At the moment, they're still building the traffic infrastructure. By 2013 there's probably going to be a cinema and a load of shops between the Ikea store and the expo center. It's all reserved for private development, so investors who want to build large surfaces can do it there. Ghent is not a big alpha town, so the demand for office space isn't astronomical, and there are other big development zones in the city too (around the two railway stations). It's expected that the area will be completely built up between 2025 and 2030, and the other highrises will probably be last ;)

The tram line that now ends at the expo should make a loop around the area in the future. A train stop has been suggested by the planners, but the Belgian National Railway company is hesitant to say the least.

Nice tower :)

Update Monday 20/09/2010

Core has risen one level.

1.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/img_9329.jpg


2.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/img_9332.jpg


3.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/img_9334.jpg


4.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/sep10/img_9338.jpg


For those who have Facebook, you can become a fan of this tower:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/MG-Tower/129996107027534

Saturday 09-10-2010:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-001.jpg

The construction cranes seen from the tram station.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-002.jpg

Henri Crombezlaan - a section of the one-way circular road around "The Loop", the former airfield turned development zone.



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-003.jpg



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-004.jpg

A motorway exit separates the construction site from the rest of The Loop, but a pedestrian bridge will be built on this location to solve that problem. The tower itself will be built on an elevated level.



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-005.jpg



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-006.jpg

There's a concrete wall along a part of the motorway exit. This will be the side of that elevated level.



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-007.jpg



8.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-008.jpg



9.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-009.jpg

There's still work on the concrete slab for the underground parking garage.



10.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-010.jpg



11.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-011.jpg (http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-011-groot.jpg)

I shot the second part of this update with a fisheye lens. Because of that the core seems pretty distant on the picture, but in fact you can get pretty close. Click on the photo to see more details :)



12.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-012.jpg



13.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/10/mg-toren-2010-10-09-013.jpg

Update
1 november 2010 - Stand van zaken
Ik was er effe voorbijgereden, dus vlug wat snapshots vanuit de auto.

1.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/nov10/img_0227.jpg


2.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/nov10/img_0228.jpg


3. Ze zitten aan de vijfde verdieping al, als ik goed tel.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/nov10/img_0229.jpg

That design looks very attractive at night according to the renders on the first post.

Is there a train station planned aswell?

At this moment, there won't be a train station. But, the main train station in Ghent, is getting renovated at this time (see GENT : Project Gent-Sint-Pieters (4) (Lang. Dutch) (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1207373), they started in 2007 and the renovation will be complete in 2017) is only at about 3-5 km away of the MG Tower. ;)

Original post by Bieb (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/member.php?u=410240) at GENT : MG Toren | 119m (2) (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=67223025&postcount=7).

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/4151/toren.jpg

Photo taken last night. I could take a picture from under the tunnel there quite easily.

Update saturday 20-11-2010:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-001.jpg

View of the site with the exit of the E40.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-002.jpg

Along that exit you can get a clear view of the inclined plane/level on which the tower is built. I suspect it's this thing that has caused the confusing news about heights. Originally this thread stated 124m, I believe, and now it says 119. Those 5 meters are probably in that slope. I'm not really sure which matters most: the height measured from the top of the slope, or the height measured from the street.

Anyway, it doesn't really matter that much. It's a pretty steep thing though, might become a bit tiring for the people who have to walk up to this building every day in the future :tongue2:



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-003.jpg

I believe the core has reached its "copy+paste" phase. It will probably grow one level every week, which would be a lot faster than the past 3 months.



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-004.jpg

Beneath the slope will be the garage for cars and bicycles. It's still not closed... Last week we had severe floods in this region, luckily it didn't turn this thing into an aquarium :D



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-005.jpg

Broken prefab elements?



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-006.jpg

The core seen from the other side. The base is already covered in scaffolding.



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-007.jpg

It still has to grow a little bit :)



8.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/11/mg-toren-2010-11-20-008.jpg

View from the bus stop. The lower crane has been elevated a little bit I think. You can already see them from a distance on both the E40 and the E17 motorways. The tower will be taller than those cranes are now, though, which is nice ^_^

Update monday 6 December 2010


1.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6033.jpg


2.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6041.jpg


3.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6042.jpg


4.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6045.jpg


5.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6051.jpg


6.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6054.jpg


7.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6057.jpg


8.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6058.jpg


9. Look at the fluo guy for scale. :)
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6059.jpg


10.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6060.jpg


11.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6063.jpg


12.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6067.jpg


13.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6069.jpg


14.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6075.jpg


15.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6078.jpg


16.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6084.jpg


17.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/dec10/img_6092.jpg

Pictures taken in the air so you can see the progress based over several months. :)



http://www.willynaessens.be/img/images/depaepegroup_mg_tower1.jpg

http://www.willynaessens.be/img/images/depaepegroup_mg_tower2.jpg

http://www.willynaessens.be/img/images/depaepegroup_mg_tower3.jpg

http://www.willynaessens.be/img/images/depaepegroup_mg_tower4.jpg

http://www.willynaessens.be/img/images/depaepegroup_mg_tower5.jpg

A Christmas present, update on friday 24-12-2010:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/12/mg-toren-2010-12-24-001.jpg



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/12/mg-toren-2010-12-24-002.jpg



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/12/mg-toren-2010-12-24-003.jpg

They've reached level 8 or 9, depending on which level you count as the base, and also depending on my counting skills. Anyway, many more must follow in the next months.



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/12/mg-toren-2010-12-24-004.jpg

Same perspective, zoomed out.



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/12/mg-toren-2010-12-24-005.jpg

From the parking of the adjacent Ikea store ^_^



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/12/mg-toren-2010-12-24-006.jpg

Great update, Thanks! :okay:

Current height:

http://i.imgur.com/74xCL.jpg

Cool impression. Thanks!

Update

updeet 19-01-2011:

http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/3614/800p.jpg

http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/7723/1600g.th.jpg (http://img651.imageshack.us/i/1600g.jpg/)

Reeds 2 lagen er bij dus sinds die foto van 05-01 die hier bewerkt werd
Stellingen verdwenen langs ene kant, en die onderbouw wordt ook reeds groter

Seems to move quite fast :)

Good progress indeed. :)

its gonna be a great building

Sky picture. I agree with Eric Offereins about the progression. :)
Recent picture taken out of the sky of the "Arteveldetoren"! (http://www.aeropix.be/images/portfolio/gent_mgtower_1_portfolio.jpg)

Nice picture :)

Close view:

http://i56.tinypic.com/16a7b15.jpg
Photo: Frederik Deceuninck

Photo taken from a bridge in the neighborhood.

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/5962/dscn3645v.jpg

Pretty. Nowhere near the Old City i hope.

The distance to the medieval Gothic skyline of downtown Ghent is big enough to leave it unaffected. I once made a little drawing on a map:



http://i39.tinypic.com/2q3ngxs.jpg



De Kuip ("the Bassin") is the name of the core of the city, where the gothic towers are. The main railwaystation, Saint Peters, is about 2.5km (1.5 miles) from there. Other 'highrises' (90m. max.) will be built there. From there, it's another 2.5km to the site of this tower. The visual impact on the city center will be minimal, if it would have any impact at all.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/Projecten/TheLoop/mg_tower_01.jpg



uh! Like the lille boot :)

http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/1606/img1791bissignredx.jpg (http://img651.imageshack.us/i/img1791bissignredx.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

The distance to the medieval Gothic skyline of downtown Ghent is big enough to leave it unaffected. I once made a little drawing on a map:



http://i39.tinypic.com/2q3ngxs.jpg



De Kuip ("the Bassin") is the name of the core of the city, where the gothic towers are. The main railwaystation, Saint Peters, is about 2.5km (1.5 miles) from there. Other 'highrises' (90m. max.) will be built there. From there, it's another 2.5km to the site of this tower. The visual impact on the city center will be minimal, if it would have any impact at all.

Oh, okay thanks. That seems like a perfect position for it!

Update

Vandaag de Ikea eens een bezoekje gebracht, mét fototoestel in de wagen :)

MG tower - KBC toren
http://i54.tinypic.com/15xtlid.jpg


http://i52.tinypic.com/2rpfm0n.jpg

:)
http://i56.tinypic.com/30ttmb4.jpg

some more pictures from yesterday:
1.
http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/7900/1102mgtower001.jpg


2.
http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/5864/1102mgtower002.jpg

3.
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/4748/1102mgtower003.jpg

4.
http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/9117/1102mgtower008.jpg

Edit: Same post as Durexxx. ^^
Edit2: Please delete this post. :)

They seem to be progressing quite fast. :)


http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/9890/photofeb10101046.jpg

Update
MG Tower:
- 50m high
- 68m to go!
- 1 326 tons of steel already
- 11 800m³ of concrete already

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/feb11/img_7443.jpg

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/feb11/img_7445.jpg

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/feb11/img_7451.jpg

Update

Dat komt soms voor. Als je problemen wil dubbelchecken met andere forummers kan je terecht in de klachtenlijn (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=530134).



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/02/mg-toren-2011-02-14-001.jpg

Zicht vanaf het vertiende op K12.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/02/mg-toren-2011-02-14-002.jpg

bonjour je suis le grutier du chantier...

http://i71.servimg.com/u/f71/11/11/37/87/blaton10.jpg (http://www.servimg.com/image_preview.php?i=3219&u=11113787)

I love your job, very nice view over the motorway there :)

its going fast..

Zicht vanuit Poortakker SDW

http://img594.imageshack.us/img594/5448/20110218poortakker.jpg
'k Had zelf nog nooit op de brug gelet

Zicht van mijn gewoonlijke plek op de KS:
http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/4758/20110218kortstng.jpg

Update:

Update MG-Toren

Photo's taken from at the IKEA store.
http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/6500/mg1fb.jpg

http://img534.imageshack.us/img534/5839/mg3r.jpg

http://img827.imageshack.us/img827/7527/mg4n.jpg

Detail
http://img827.imageshack.us/img827/1139/mgdetail2.jpg

Photo's taken from at the mobile phone store.
http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/8067/mggsmwinkel.jpg

http://img806.imageshack.us/img806/6415/mggsmwinkel2.jpg

A small amount of glass has arrived :banana:
http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/3963/mgglas.jpg

I saw the building yesterday. The sign said it was already 50m tall. 69m to go

its going fast!!

aujourd hui telescopage de la grue a 100 m

^^ Hauteur sous crochet ou hauteur totale?

Good to see the first glass. :)

hauteur sous crochet... trop de vent pour le moment

^^ Can't you please speak English? Annoying (and not understandable for some) in French. ;)

Hauteur sous crochet = haakhoogte
Une grue = een (toren)kraan

;)

nice!

UPDATE 5th of March

The crane on the left has been raised to 100m (300ft) after some delays due to strong winds! The finished building will be 80 feet higher than the crane. And the first glass panels have also been fitted.

http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/892/afstand2.jpg


http://img806.imageshack.us/img806/892/afstand2.jpg


http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/9914/gsm3r.jpg


http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/9015/gsm4.jpg


http://img41.imageshack.us/img41/4687/gsm5.jpg


Taken from the bridge
http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/2776/vanopbrug2.jpg

http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/3860/vanopbrug.jpg


http://img844.imageshack.us/img844/2253/werkvolk.jpg


http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/9761/werkvolk3.jpg


http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/4237/werkvolk4.jpg


http://img851.imageshack.us/img851/7561/glas2.jpg


http://img816.imageshack.us/img816/5430/hoogte.jpg


http://img808.imageshack.us/img808/5373/hoogte2.jpg


http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/8963/hoogte3.jpg

1 week = 1 floor
http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/4128/lichtkrant.jpg

now 1.410 tons (3 million pounds) of steel
http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/2894/lichtkrant2.jpg

now 12.718 cubic metres (449.131 cubic feet) of concrete
http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/9770/lichtkrant3.jpg

now 57 m (187 ft) high . . .
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/1665/lichtkrant4.jpg

still 61 m (200 ft) to go!
http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/3804/lichtkrant5.jpg

Wow, it will go fast now! Thanks for the updates.

Some video of this construction!

o9_H4rnTo6Q

Eerste testje, m'n vinger volgende keer niet op lens houden :D In HD bekijken he.

Is er ondertussen al iets veranderd?

^^ you can check it in its thread in the Be. Forum (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1247543&page=13) Where you can speak in dutch !

Update


01:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_01.jpg

02:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_02.jpg

03:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_03.jpg

04:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_04.jpg

05:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_05.jpg

06:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_06.jpg

07:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_07.jpg

08:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_08.jpg

09:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_09.jpg

10:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_10.jpg

11:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_11.jpg

12:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_12.jpg

13:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_13.jpg

14:
http://images.internix.be/fotos/20110313_mg_14.jpg

Update

Het mooie weer lokte mij naar de Blaarmeersen, en naar het uitzicht bovenop het torentje daar:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/03/mg_toren_2011-03-19-001.jpg



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/03/mg_toren_2011-03-19-002.jpg

they are not messing around with the construction, are they? Last time i checked was in January and they've already glass up and at about 14 floors now i'm guessing?

Update
On monday he looked just about the same as on sunday. The glass does have a nice colour, probably because of the blue sky.
1.
http://img848.imageshack.us/img848/6356/dscn3867.jpg

2. De elevators were working continously.
http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/8248/dscn3869y.jpg

3. More important are the bricks. They're indeed a bit lighter than on the photo of JumpV.
http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/6030/dscn3871.jpg

4.
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/8246/dscn3872v.jpg

5.
http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/6566/dscn3874.jpg

6. From another spot.
http://img340.imageshack.us/img340/920/dscn3880o.jpg

Update:
Today: 64m high, still 55m to go!

Photos taken from the motorway E40:

1.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/mar11/img_0782.jpg


2.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/mar11/img_0795.jpg


3.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/mar11/img_0797.jpg


4.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/mar11/img_0798.jpg


5.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/mar11/img_0799.jpg

Good progress. I like the diagonal split

New update by me
1.
http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/m568/durexxx1/1104__mg_006.jpg?t=1302087313

2.
http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/m568/durexxx1/1104__mg_001.jpg?t=1302087481

3.
http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/m568/durexxx1/1104__mg_002.jpg?t=1302087562

4. already 75 meters..
http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/m568/durexxx1/1104__mg_003.jpg?t=1302087628

5.
http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/m568/durexxx1/1104__mg_004.jpg?t=1302087704

6.
http://i1132.photobucket.com/albums/m568/durexxx1/1104__mg_005.jpg?t=1302087739

^^Lovely update!

44m to go. :D

As in Medieval times Ghent was one of the largest cities in Europe, we already have a set of towers in the city that allow us to take a view of the city from a certain altitude. I thought the time was ripe to see what this new tower U/C looked like when seen from the Belfry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belfry_of_Ghent):



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/mg_toren_2011-04-10-001.jpg

The distance between the Belfry, which could be considered as the very heart of the city, and the new tower that's being built on the former airfield, is roughly 5 km (3 miles).



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/mg_toren_2011-04-10-002.jpg

A wider angle offers a little more foreground/background interaction.



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/mg_toren_2011-04-10-003.jpg

Same, but zoomed in again.



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/mg_toren_2011-04-10-004.jpg

This tower will probably be the cornerstone of a new skyline that will emerge in the south of Ghent in the next 15-20 years. The entire former airfield is being redeveloped into an office and retail/entertainment cluster enclosed by a one-way internal beltway. The general concept is somewhat derived from La Défense I guess, although obviously on a much smaller scale.

Anyway, building regulation in the plan for "The Loop", 'cause that's its name, state that there should be another 4-5 tall buildings in this area, which spreads out along the horizon to the right of the MG Tower. It says nothing about height restrictions in metres, there's only a restriction in gross surfaces and in the floor count, which should be between 15 and 27 floors. The MG Tower has 24 floors.



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/mg_toren_2011-04-10-005.jpg

A little interaction with the architecture of the Belfry itself ^_^



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/mg_toren_2011-04-10-006.jpg

Between the former airfield and the centre of the city lies the city's main railway station, Ghent-Saint-Peter's, also one of the busiest stations in the country. A very large redevelopment of that station has been going on for a couple of years already and is scheduled to finish by 2020. Along with the transformation of the station, a part of the railyard next to it will be redeveloped into a new highrise cluster. Well, highrise by local standards of course: max. height is 90m (app. 300 ft). From this point of view those buildings will seem very spread out, but with "The Loop" filling up the gap in the middle, this might become an interesting little skyline by the time all is finished. In 20 years or so :D

Great post! :)

Update.

Voor de verandering heb ik nog eens van nabij een paar foto's genomen.

1. Totaalbeeld. Er zijn 2 verdiepingen bijgekomen in vergelijking met de laatste update op 8 april.
http://img853.imageshack.us/img853/1835/dscn4440f.jpg

2. Nog een totaalbeeld. Op drie wanden wordt er nu bekleding aangebracht, de 4e heb ik niet kunnen zien.
(o ja, zoals je kan zien heb ik een vervelende lantaarnpaal op de voorgrond een kopje kleiner gemaakt met photoshop, mochten jullie eraan gehecht zijn wil ik hem altijd wel terugzetten)
http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/3627/dscn4457.jpg

3. De basis en hellend vlak. Er is weer een tweede torenkraan *kuch*. Naast die grote ziet die er echt zielig uit.
http://img806.imageshack.us/img806/6816/dscn4461.jpg

4. Het gat in de kelder vooraan wordt ook gedicht (het lichte beton is nieuw).
http://img130.imageshack.us/img130/8211/dscn4449z.jpg

5. De "achterkant" waar er ook wordt gebouwd, met de nieuwe kraan.
http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/4812/dscn4446d.jpg

6. Détail. Men is bezig met de ventilatie/verwarming te hangen.
Merk ook op dat je mooi kan zien waar die hellende bijbouw komt: op de tweede pilaar van links zie je uitstulpingen waar op voortgebouwd kan worden en op het eerste "normale verdiep" een betonnen richel.
Op foto 1 kan je deze ook zien. Die uitstulpingen zijn er op pilaren 1, 2 en 4 (van links), zou er een opening zijn bij pilaar 3? Dit kan kloppen met de schamele plannetjes vooraan in het topic.
http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/2478/dscn4447g.jpg

7. Ook aan de andere kant verschijnt de ventilatie/verwarming.
http://img864.imageshack.us/img864/5682/dscn4455.jpg

8. Nog eens de gevelbekleding
http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/6412/dscn4442p.jpg

En weer terug naar de Betsberg. Mochten er nu eens geen bomen staan zodat je een zicht had van 60+ m

9: 14 april, gaatje tussen de bomen voor de betsberg (~50m TAW), Nikon D70, 6.1MP, standaard lens 18-70mm.
http://img29.imageshack.us/img29/9452/dsc0058pf.jpg

10: 13 april, beetje verder (~46m TAW), Coolpix P1, 8MP, 36-126mm
http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/9346/dscn4409b.jpg

Mocht ik het eens op een zonnige dag, en niet bij valavond (foto 9) proberen krijg ik het misschien nog een beetje beter maar aangezien ik geen tele heb is dit de grens van mijn kunnen. D70 heeft duidelijk een betere kwaliteit als ik inzoom op de foto ... helaas minder pixels en zoom dan zijn kleine broertje zodat de laatste wint qua détail.

Komaan, waar blijven die zware lenzen?!

Lovely project! After long years finally a new skyscraper for Belgium (outside Brussels). When was the last built?

^^Probably somewhere in the 70ties...

It was about time... Hopefully Liège will manage to get their skyscraper-project of the ground aswell :)

Update

Nog eens foto's van dicht bij, en niet van een een heuvel in de verte :)


1.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5103/5660559705_7f06c94bd0_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5660559705/)

2. het bijgebouw
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5025/5661128712_f0dd8ea96c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661128712/)

3. nieuwe stukken voor de kraan liggen al klaar
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5222/5661129000_a44d8decd3_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661129000/)

4. http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5187/5661129330_fc6192e472_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661129330/)

5.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5302/5660565569_28dd34f64e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5660565569/)

6. Ergens op de onderste verdiepen
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5261/5661129654_9867578462_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661129654/)

7. de afwerking gaat gestaag vooruit
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5149/5661129944_1a90f19902_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661129944/)

8. http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5184/5661130268_4fdd2739ee_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661130268/)

9.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5221/5661135250_8e02b5348a_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661135250/)

10.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5065/5661137176_9c2d384911_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661137176/)

11.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5184/5661130268_4fdd2739ee_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661130268/)

12.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5102/5660570549_a55d9f860f_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5660570549/)

13. trapje omhoog
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5265/5660569963_048f87f523_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5660569963/)

14.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5027/5660567499_ffbed780bf_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5660567499/)

15.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5068/5660566155_3ee04631de_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5660566155/)

16.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5148/5661134344_eeb939ca29_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661134344/)

17.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5188/5661133406_002e1bec9e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661133406/)

18.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5026/5661139166_385de67d4d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661139166/)

19.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5145/5661134874_bd31a03e52_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661134874/)

20. gezien van aan Don Bosco
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5221/5661130552_b08e1ee778_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5661130552/)

37 meters to go. Getting close. :)

De Arteveldetoren (werknaam was MG-toren) is een in aanbouw zijnde kantoorgebouw in de Belgische stad Gent. De toren zal met zijn 119 meter meteen het hoogste gebouw worden van Gent en het hoogste kantoorgebouw van het Vlaamse Gewest. Hij wordt de regionale hoofdzetel van de bankverzekeraar KBC. De eerste spadesteek kwam er in maart 2010, de oplevering wordt verwacht in 2013.

37 meters to go. Getting close. :)

Nice that they keep us up to date about the height. :)

Another update, from saturday 30-04-2011. Not much has changed since the last update, so sorry for the 'image diarrhea', but I wanted to add a couple of perspectives that we hadn't seen in a while:


1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-001.jpg



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-002.jpg



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-003.jpg

Getting there...



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-004.jpg



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-005.jpg



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-006.jpg



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-007.jpg



8.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-008.jpg

They were working on an underpass that connects the parking of the tower to the internal beltway of "The Loop", the future commercial district, underneath the exit of the E40 onto the N43.



9.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-009.jpg



10.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-010.jpg



11.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-011.jpg

A view from the fire escape stairs at the back of Ikea.



12.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-012.jpg

A view from the platform in front of the entrance hall of Flanders Expo. Flanders Expo is Belgium's second largest exposition hall, and it houses the world's largest annual indoor techno festival, called "I Love Techno". Technoheads with a love for highrises know where to go next autumn ;)



13.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-013.jpg

Seen from behind and between the tin boxes of Flanders Expo. The road on the foreground is the opposite side of the internal beltway of The Loop.



14.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-014.jpg

This is that beltway again, this time the eastern section. Work has started to put this piece of the beltway underground, so traffic can pass underneath the tram infrastructure.

In front of the tower there is one half of a two-building residential project that's also part of the "The Loop" program.



15.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/04/arteveldetoren_2011-04-22-015.jpg

The Flanders Expo tram station. The height at the hook of the crane is still 100m...

Update

Ik heb foto's (ga die hier straks in editten)

Zicht van nabij de Sterre, Kortrijksesteenweg

http://img577.imageshack.us/img577/9929/dsc06561y.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/577/dsc06561y.jpg/)

http://img853.imageshack.us/img853/6968/dsc06567z.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/853/dsc06567z.jpg/)

http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/2778/dsc06574u.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/263/dsc06574u.jpg/)

http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/5148/dsc06575y.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/833/dsc06575y.jpg/)

Ook de achterkant begint vorm te krijgen
http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/2972/dsc06581vn.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/88/dsc06581vn.jpg/)

http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/4650/dsc06583w.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/854/dsc06583w.jpg/)

Ook de bekleding wordt aangebracht
http://img585.imageshack.us/img585/6036/dsc06570.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/585/dsc06570.jpg/)

It's an office tower. The end user will be KBC bank, that will centralize all its regional activities for the provinces of West- and East-Flanders in this location, and also put its IT-department here, I think.

It's an office tower. The end user will be KBC bank, that will centralize all its regional activities for the provinces of West- and East-Flanders in this location, and also put its IT-department here, I think.

I thought they would only centralize their current activities in Ghent to there, except their offices at 'the Kouter'? Atleast, that's what I read.

^^ You'll see it confirmed in this article (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=77769647#post77769647) that Buffalo Soldier posted in the Belgian thread yesterday.

Today one of our members, Dequal, visited the construction site for a look on the inside (today was the annual national 'open construction site day'). Here's a panorama he made:



Panorama: klikken om te vergroten (21 703x1442).

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/panorama_small.jpg (http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/panorama_full.jpg)

- The crane is now at 130m.
- The tower is currently at 97m.
- From now on, the tower will grow with prefabelements.
- The day when they reach the highest point was calcuated to be at the end of june, but it will be mid-july now.

Picture taken from the air:

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/247715_10150253322787437_335831317436_8750757_6111249_n.jpg
!

^^that picture is awesome!

Update from last weekend (saturday):
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3467/5808839429_1707602e02_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808839429/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808839429/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2359/5809406522_4bab1868dd_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809406522/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809406522/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2218/5809404704_dc7c0d08dc_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809404704/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809404704/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2552/5809405358_0c73159bae_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809405358/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809405358/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2642/5809403464_74f2922718_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809403464/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809403464/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2702/5808839919_3a2cf9f826_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808839919/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808839919/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3114/5808843219_6786fa35ae_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808843219/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808843219/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2514/5809403988_77ae29cf5d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809403988/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809403988/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2319/5808844423_1b7cbc73b8_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808844423/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808844423/)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3457/5809408092_f7bf863c7b_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809408092/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809408092/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2471/5808845907_1bf5d7fbbf_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808845907/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808845907/)

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5111/5808846437_594646ee97_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808846437/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808846437/)

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5108/5808846869_82271ffe88_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808846869/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808846869/)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2518/5808847409_8717ea8cbd_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808847409/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5808847409/)

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5302/5809410650_0a89d76829_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809410650/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 04-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5809410650/)

Update from yesterday.
Foto's van 14 juni, gisteren dus :)

01:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3159/5833548925_e1c088aab2_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833548925/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833548925/)

02:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3490/5833554897_8deaa53378_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833554897/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833554897/)

03:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3103/5833566541_eb7848afba_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833566541/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833566541/)

04:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3473/5833549957_45c3be9722_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833549957/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833549957/)

05:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3499/5833552109_d1a92fa7e5_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833552109/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833552109/)

06:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5198/5834113252_5d93c5c963_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834113252/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834113252/)

07:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2495/5833556091_4733547dd6_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833556091/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833556091/)

08:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3476/5833567339_197819fb02_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833567339/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833567339/)

09:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3459/5833550671_b9f8f74d76_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833550671/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833550671/)

10:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5222/5834110792_b5b3387b4a_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834110792/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834110792/)

11:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3483/5834117516_ce3c1b0f10_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834117516/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834117516/)

12:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2424/5833564467_3a7a5e39b9_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833564467/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833564467/)

13:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3460/5834111292_75bd2e06df_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834111292/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834111292/)

14:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2773/5834106614_0b016b4d23_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834106614/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834106614/)

15:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3389/5833553727_c39f144962_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833553727/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833553727/)

16:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5181/5834122422_882f136da8_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834122422/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834122422/)

17:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2726/5834119684_8771221ede_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834119684/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834119684/)

18:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3462/5834105096_442c7846d9_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834105096/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834105096/)

19:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2524/5834108396_bc88bc768b_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834108396/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5834108396/)

20:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5270/5833566033_9642fb8ec4_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833566033/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833566033/)

21:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3105/5833551613_7deb0d620b_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833551613/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren 14-06-2011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5833551613/)

Here's a view from a watchtower in a park in the southwest of the city:



http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/06/panorama-2011-06-18-klein.jpg (http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/06/panorama-2011-06-18-groot.jpg)



^^ Click for a bigger version. The tower should be topped out by the mid of july.

The design is amazing.

The tower has reached the top. :)


't boompje staat er inderdaad op.

1. Gemengde gevoelens voor ons, De Paepe is duidelijk tevreden mee.
http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/8358/dsc0118copyb.jpg

2. Jammer dat ik nu pas dit punt heb ontdekt: vanop de brug van de R4 over de Leie.
http://img804.imageshack.us/img804/2967/dsc0079x.jpg

3.
http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/3992/dsc0107lv.jpg

4.
http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/8599/dsc0109xd.jpg

5. Het bijgebouwtje is nog altijd vrij ruw
http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/3205/dsc0098um.jpg

6. Het auditorium is dicht.
http://img827.imageshack.us/img827/60/dsc0100od.jpg

7. Op de voorgrond is er nieuwe betonnen muur opgetrokken. Ik zie niet meteen in hoe die in het plaatje past van dat "groen hellend vlak".
Op dat hellend vlak ging echter wel een redelijk berg aarde gestort worden omdat er ook bomen in moeten groeien, misschien wordt dit dan de rand van die bloembak?
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/7584/dsc0111vp.jpg

8.
http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/327/dsc0125tz.jpg

9. En nog eens van de andere kant, zo zijn we rond.
http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/7990/dsc0128d.jpg

More:

Nog enkele foto's van daarjuist. Het kan zijn dat er dubbele zitten met de foto's van Crocy.


01:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5273/5891503377_5b29b0db68_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891503377/)
De top is bereikt (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891503377/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

02:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5199/5891504307_646575d799_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891504307/)
Kant E40 mooi aan het blinken (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891504307/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

03:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5306/5892070678_ecfea2dd5e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892070678/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892070678/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

04:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5034/5891501793_8e1ff3112d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891501793/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891501793/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

05:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6020/5891500009_7e3702b316_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891500009/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891500009/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

06:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6044/5892069142_9edce9d045_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892069142/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892069142/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

07:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5079/5891498609_8ca1db5ef2_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891498609/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891498609/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

08:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6024/5891500585_5e36cebb4e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891500585/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891500585/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

09:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5066/5892066348_3948089c0c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892066348/)
YES!! Eindelijk! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892066348/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

10:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6035/5892065966_f60ec7ebc6_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892065966/)
De top is bereikt! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892065966/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

11:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5067/5891498013_1193084a44_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891498013/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891498013/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

12:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5277/5891501125_d6da1cf100_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891501125/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891501125/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

13:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6005/5891502993_3158a790c5_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891502993/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891502993/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

14:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6055/5892125530_d4050b414e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892125530/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5892125530/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

15:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5236/5891558985_c32cf5deb0_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891558985/)
KBC-Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/5891558985/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

Great photo update from the photographers and thanks for posting them here.

This is a nice tower, way to go Ghent!
Although this might sound stupid, but am I the only one who thinks it looks.... er.... "eastern european-y"?

^^ That hasn't come up in any discussion on our forum yet, but it's interesting... I'm not all too familiar with Eastern European tower building, so I wouldn't really know. How is it Eastern-European-y? :)

And more photos:
1.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/img_1609.jpg


2.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/img_1616.jpg


3.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/img_1617.jpg


4.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/img_1623.jpg


5.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/img_1626.jpg


6.
http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Dequal/mgtower/img_1629.jpg

Nice development!

Why is there a tree at the top?

^^Typical a Belgian thing to do when the shell structure or "ruwbouw" is finished. Kind of odd to do it with a highrise but people that have build a home do it all the time. It's a sort of tradition. My parents did it to 10 years ago when they build a new house...
Most people only put a tree branch on top like this:

http://blogimages.bloggen.be/driesensofie/56-c9722a2be0927560fcda2b372c52cf13.jpg

Today 23-07-2011 I combined a visit to a local shop with a little photo work:



1.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-001.jpg

The tower recently topped out.



2.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-002.jpg



3.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-003.jpg



4.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-004.jpg



5.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-005.jpg



6.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-006.jpg



7.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-007.jpg



8.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-008.jpg

In this lovely summer weather the light gray granite cladding seems to blend perfectly with the epic sky.



9.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-009.jpg



10.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-010.jpg



11.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-011.jpg

On the right side you can see the promotional logo of the city made out of flowers, although from this perspective it's a bit hard to read :)



12.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-012.jpg



13.

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/07/arteveldetoren_2011-07-23-013.jpg

Na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na Bat-maaan. With the two thingies on top with nothing between trigger my imagination. It looks so ominous :D

^^Typical a Belgian thing to do when the shell structure or "ruwbouw" is finished. Kind of odd to do it with a highrise but people that have build a home do it all the time. It's a sort of tradition. My parents did it to 10 years ago when they build a new house...
Most people only put a tree branch on top like this:

http://blogimages.bloggen.be/driesensofie/56-c9722a2be0927560fcda2b372c52cf13.jpg

Not just in Belgium. ;)

A part of the blue lights. :)
http://www.bieb.be/bieb/temp/torenblauw.jpg

Update from today:


1.
http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/3118/dscn5373q.jpg

2.
http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/5135/dscn5379a.jpg

3.
http://img845.imageshack.us/img845/2347/dscn5380.jpg

4.
http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/2152/dscn5382kz.jpg

5.
http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/2286/dscn5383j.jpg

Fresh pictures from today:

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6152/6179290492_03e54d7d22_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179290492/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179290492/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6174/6178765045_b9e1faab64_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178765045/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178765045/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6170/6178766049_248d51c81b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178766049/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178766049/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6154/6179292612_b07e2d128d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179292612/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179292612/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6168/6178766857_7cac574cff_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178766857/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178766857/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6175/6178767331_638c4e1038_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178767331/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178767331/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr
High voltage cable


http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6156/6178767635_363d7d1b78_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178767635/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178767635/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr
Air ducts

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6164/6178768075_462e7e3134_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178768075/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178768075/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr
Facade cladding

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6171/6179294954_797ab2fe6e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179294954/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179294954/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr
Data cabling

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6157/6178769221_c607b2d46c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178769221/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6178769221/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6176/6179296230_8d2090f82f_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179296230/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179296230/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

I wasn't alone, they flew around the tower for a couple of minutes and then headed back from where they were coming :)
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6156/6179296566_0691aa8faf_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179296566/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179296566/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6175/6179296938_7706a84474_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179296938/)
KBC Arteveldetoren (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jumpv/6179296938/) by JumpV (http://www.flickr.com/people/jumpv/), on Flickr
They will have a nice view on a smaller building from another bank

Beautifull,i like de cladding and shapes in it:)

Indeed, well chosen materials. Being one of the first landmarks in the region, this will be a tower to be proud of.

Beautiful tower. :)

2 pictures taken with a cellphone:

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/10/arteveldetoren-2011-10-08-001.jpg

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/10/arteveldetoren-2011-10-08-002.jpg

The tower at night.
http://www.bieb.be/bieb/temp/kbc.jpg

Another photo:

http://www.bieb.be/bieb/temp/kbc2.jpg

Can't wait till the blue light go on!

Can't wait till the blue light go on!

The blue light will only be used during special occasions. Normal white lights will be active every evening/night. :)
Another photo update, from the regional newspaper 'De Gentenaar':



http://i43.tinypic.com/34otrmd.jpg

http://i44.tinypic.com/2eelbmx.jpg

http://i40.tinypic.com/11m5kcn.jpg

http://i42.tinypic.com/2vlmk60.jpg

http://i44.tinypic.com/2hnmf5d.jpg

http://i39.tinypic.com/mbs76b.jpg

http://i40.tinypic.com/10rsf42.jpg

2 new photos:
Photos taken with the camera of my cellphone during rainy weather:

http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/2850/foto0054g.jpg

http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/724/foto0043mg.jpg

It's really obvious how dark the tower becomes when it's raining.

Toevallig eergisteren op dezelfde plaats een foto gemaakt!

http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa396/PappaGiorgio87/IMG_4138.jpg

...

http://www.bieb.be/art/20120225_vlucht/IMG_5876-border.jpg

http://www.bieb.be/art/20120225_vlucht/IMG_5880-border.jpg

http://www.bieb.be/art/20120225_vlucht/IMG_5885-border.jpg

http://www.bieb.be/art/20120225_vlucht/IMG_5893-border.jpg
....

Vandaag een bezoek gebracht aan het gebouw.
Ik ben enorm verrast van de afwerking...het gaat heel vlug.
In de zomer gaat KBC verhuizen...
Ook enkele leuke weetjes bekomen over al de proeven die men heeft gedaan op de prefab, natuursteen, ...

Ik heb een heleboel foto's van op het dak (uitzichten) tem binnenafwerking.
Kan ik dit ergens gezamelijk uploaden?

http://oi41.tinypic.com/55fepy.jpg

http://oi41.tinypic.com/2r5giyr.jpg

http://oi43.tinypic.com/m3hqx.jpg
.....

Why was this location in an idustrial park chosen?

^^ +1...why that location?

Why was this location in an idustrial park chosen?

It's not an industrial park, it's the former airfield. It was abandoned in the 1980's. At first the grounds were only used for an exposition hall, a hotel, a regional tv station and the rest became a HUGE parking lot. About a decade ago they started working on a redevelopment masterplan though, because the grounds are strategically located between 3 major motorways and one of the countries busiest railway stations.

The masterplan aims at building up the entire area by 2030-ish, with offices and some retail/leisure development. The execution of the masterplan is still in a very early phase. The Ikea store was built only 3 years ago, and was the first and so far only retail realization on the grounds. This tower is the first office development, and they probably started with thàt because it would give the area more visibility for investors or something...

At the moment there's also construction work going on for a couple of smaller office building and condo projects. No huge things yet, because the traffic infrastructure of the grounds is still under construction. There's and internal beltway that's nearing completion (probably by the end of this year), and the tramline that now terminates near the expo hall, will be extended with a one-directional loop around the grounds, but it's still a bit unclear when that's actually going to happen.

Anyway, to cut a long story short: not industrial grounds, abandoned airfield, masterplan, 2030-ish. :D

PS: the masterplan involves several more towers. They have to be anything between 15 and 27 floors tall, but there's no restrictions on the actual physical height. This one here has 24 floors but already reaches 119m. It is possible, although not too likely, that more 100+ towers will appear here in the next two decades. And if not, at least a good handful of 80+ buildings. It will probably become a nice cluster someday.

Great tower, nice design.:okay:

Cool tower but what i do not understand is why it's build so far from downtown Ghent?

^^ I just wrote a lengthy explanation for that 2 posts before yours...

^^ I just wrote a lengthy explanation for that 2 posts before yours...

I dont know how I managed to read over that post :p.

Thank you for the info, Puinkabouter :cheers:

Foto door Veerle Poelaert.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/420350_2570782607818_1801840042_1578549_490050939_n.jpg
....

not completed yet?

Some pictures :)

http://www.bieb.be/bieb/temp/mg1.jpg

http://www.bieb.be/bieb/temp/mg2.jpg

http://www.bieb.be/bieb/temp/mg3.jpg

Eerste 2 foto's genomen van op een bus, 3e foto genomen van aan de Quick :)

De toren echt toch echt wel mooi strak, de tuin vind ik ook mooi, al is het wel jammer van die hekkens. Al is dat ook begrijpelijk..
En hoe het zit met de blauwe verlichting weet ik niet echt, op deze manier oogt het in elk geval een beetje vreemd. Van aan de andere kant zie je bijna niets in het blauw. Soms staat de schuine flankstreep ook blauw verlicht, maar zondag dus niet.



Na een tipje van een vriend (;)) naar de Arteveldetoren gefietst. Ik zeg alvast één ding: ik heb ongelofelijk gesukkeld met mijn instellingen, vandaar dat er om de zoveel foto's een flits zichtbaar is :)

http://i.imgur.com/6yih2.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/5d8jP.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/vZkEs.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/7w0zi.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/1K8ZF.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/m65gA.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/GSrud.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/nD0OW.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/ba7jx.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/gfzcl.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/uFK6k.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/wP1AQ.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/cqIRI.jpg
ying en yang, lekker cliché

http://i.imgur.com/fVPCE.jpg

Thanks Mike, you beat me to it :cheers:



http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6110/7029362655_23e7aacc53_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/pkeyn/7029362655/)
Ghentinel (http://www.flickr.com/photos/pkeyn/7029362655/) by Peter Keyngnaert (pkeyn) (http://www.flickr.com/people/pkeyn/), on Flickr

(c) Mark Monfoort

http://markmontfoort.com/foto/wp-content/gallery/MGt/20120328-1434-0048-2.jpg

http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6137/6199207830_3a99ae8726_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/82965928@N00/6199207830/)
MG tower - KBC Arteveldetoren Gent Ghent Gand Belgium (http://www.flickr.com/photos/82965928@N00/6199207830/) by metamorphoses (http://www.flickr.com/people/82965928@N00/), on Flickr

Before and after

http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2011/03/mg_toren_2011-03-19-002.jpg http://www.majhost.com/gallery/Puinkabouter/2010/06/mg-tower-2010-06-04-001.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/lQ67W.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/X67Rr.jpg

Delightful landmark for the Ghent Region.

Cool tower but what i do not understand is why it's build so far from downtown Ghent?


^^ I just wrote a lengthy explanation for that 2 posts before yours...

Despite the relatively close railwaystation and a slow tramway connection the site is indeed very suburban and car-orientated. Density for the whole district is quite low.
I think it's overall a missed chance for Ghent. It's nothing more than an upgraded suburban office park with some planned towers, Ikea, and in the futur even worse: a theatre and shops that should be in the city center.

This office tower between a motorway offramp is nothing urban for me.

I would like to see more urbanity, more residential and a faster and more performant lightrail connection with the railway station and the city center.

'Wings' (just completed) accounts for 117 apartments. The field between Ikea en Xpo is next in line. The Take Off-project is attracting buyers as we speak. In two years time, the lightrail tracks will become a loop. The totality of lightrail 1 has been renewed up to the city center. And a retailer the size of Decathlon has NOTHING to find in the city center. The movie theatre is going to be an additional smaller theatre for people that don't live in Ghent, the people that now take their car downtown to go watch in the Decascoop ;)

Even worse..

Another pic:

http://1.nieuwsbladcdn.be/Assets/Images_Upload/2012/04/20/GEMGAFWE.jpg

The movie theatre is going to be an additional smaller theatre for people that don't live in Ghent, the people that now take their car downtown to go watch in the Decascoop ;)

Even worse..

Strange vision on urbanity. Movie theaters should be in the city center and people should be encouraged to come over there with public transport.

Very nice tower, but a bit out of place in this industrial park. They should have build it in the citycenter instead.

Strange vision on urbanity. Movie theaters should be in the city center and people should be encouraged to come over there with public transport.

I meant people from Sint-Denijs, Drongen, Destelbergen, Evergem, even Geraardsbergen, Sleidinge, Deinze, Gavere... You know what giant influence Ghent has on the west of Flanders. Do you think you would go out for a night out with the kids by public transport if you lived 1 hour away from the movie theatre? Do you think our public transportation can handle such traffic? It's struggling at the moment, and I take the train a lot.



http://i41.tinypic.com/2l5ely.jpg


http://i39.tinypic.com/977234.jpg


http://i41.tinypic.com/hwa989.jpg


http://i44.tinypic.com/5nmd7o.jpg


http://i39.tinypic.com/11s2i6d.jpg



http://i44.tinypic.com/zv1poz.jpg


http://i43.tinypic.com/169p4pc.jpg


http://i44.tinypic.com/rlcqiv.jpg


http://i41.tinypic.com/11brypf.jpg


http://i39.tinypic.com/racm6u.jpg


All images property of http://www.viewvision.be

not completed yet?

They're doing the decoration inside now. Should be totally finished at the end of june/july, if I remember correctly.

Update: The official logo of KBC has replaced the MG Tower logo.

http://i47.servimg.com/u/f47/13/17/75/09/imag0310.jpg