Police Academy

From the sixties of the previous century, the Policy Academy was vested in the former De Wijert seminary in Apeldoorn. It was not exactly a good fit and even after a series of small renovations, it was always a question of making do. This is why at the beginning of 2000 it was decided to leave this historic building in order to occupy a new building elsewhere. Ultimately, the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations did not consider this a good idea. The seminary is located in a beautiful spot with lots of greenery and ample parking. The Atelier Pro en Leon Thier created a new, impressive design. The monumental chapel was fully retained in its original style and now functions as a meeting room and restaurant. The former inner court of the preparatory seminary is spanned by 25-metre tall curved trusses and forms the core of the new school.

ABT

During the design phase a different firm provided the building management, but transferred the general site management and the supervision of construction to ABT during the construction phase. A drastic restoration/renovation of this nature combined with ambitious new development, demands specific constructional knowledge. The problem in a project like this is that it is difficult to ascertain the actual state of the building on the basis of historical drawings. Only once all later additions are demolished – and the building has largely been stripped down – is it possible to determine how to solve certain problems best. If this is effectively done at the construction site, it does not affect the pace of construction. The condition, however, is to have sufficient architectural knowledge present at the site in order to immediately make any required adjustments. For example, a construction strategy had to be conceived in order to construct an underground car park right beside the extremely thin existing foundation. After three years of construction the building was occupied. In the meantime, ABT has developed a long-term maintenance plan that provides insight into the financial resources required to safeguard the quality of the buildings, the technical installations and the grounds over an extended period of time.

Expertise: Project supervisor, Construction management, Installation design Features or Specials: Atrium, Monument, Renovation, Existing building, Extension Awards: Gulden feniks 2011 I Renovation