ConcepT

Venlo 't Bat: Reinforcing a Flood Defense in the City Centre

The flood defense Venlo 't Bat protects the city center of Venlo against high water levels on the River Meuse. The existing defense consists of a flood wall with demountable barriers, which are installed during high-water events.  To improve flood safety, the water board aims to minimize the use of these demountable barriers by incorporating innovative flood protection solutions.

In addition to the reinforcement of the flood defense, the municipality of Venlo has existing urban development plans that include a partially open flood defense. This aligns with the municipality's ambition to preserve as much visual and physical connection as possible between the city center and the River Meuse.

The flood defense reinforcement project at Venlo 't Bat and the municipality's urban development ambitions overlap and strongly influence one another. Witteveen+Bos has been involved since the start of the project and has been working on creating an integral design. To enhance flood safety while preserving the connection between the city and the river, an innovative solution has been incorporated into the design: a self-closing flood defense system.

In this lunchtime lecture, we will take you through the complexities of designing and delivering an innovative flood defense project in a busy, densely populated urban environment, where flood safety, spatial quality and stakeholder interests must be carefully balanced.