Company has a parking lot demolished for a huge water tank, so that residents can use rainwater (Ghent)

A contractor started demolishing a section of parking near Dampoort on Monday. The piece of concrete had no real use and is being replaced by a green zone, with a huge water tank underneath. A striking win-win, for which residents and companies are joining forces.

When it rains, the water from the roof of the Hubo and Tom&Co on the Dendermondsesteenweg now simply runs to the sewer. But that is about to change. From 2024, rainwater will be collected in a large, underground water tank. That tank will in turn provide water to the residents of the apartments next door.

It is briefly summarized what a group of Ghent residents, together with an entrepreneur and the Ghent Environmental Front, are planning near Dampoort. A contractor began breaking out 650 square meters of concrete in the parking lot on Monday.

“It was a bit of a no man’s land without a real function anyway,” says Klaas Blondé of Siklos Invest, the owner of the sites. A 120 cubic meter tank is placed underground, which is connected to the drainage pipes of the enormous roof of the Hubo and Tom&Co.

120,000 liters of water

The tank can collect 120,000 liters of water. They want to collect and reuse hundreds of thousands of liters of rainwater every year. It also helps against flooding in the area. A small park will be constructed on top of the tank, with two wadis. When the tank is full, the rainwater can go there.

The tank is connected to a cohousing with apartments and to the Lux party room. “That tank is a temporary storage vessel and an extra buffer to replenish the rainwater tanks of the Bijgaardehof cohousing and the party room,” says resident and co-creator Matthias Demuzere.

“If all tanks are full, the rainwater overflows into two wadis where the rainwater can infiltrate into the soil. In this way we strive for a rainwater-neutral solution.” A walking path through the green zone completes the picture.

170,000 euros in subsidies from the Blue Deal have been allocated to the large water tank. With smart control, residents and stakeholders also hope to set up a system that preventively empties the tank when heavy rain is forecast.