"Restoration almost impossible": FIEGE plans to tear down and rebuild the "Turtle" at Münster's city harbour
The restoration of the dilapidated "Turtle" at the city harbour is proving – as was the case with the "Elephant" – more difficult than originally anticipated. The dilapidated concrete silo is now to be replaced by a new, green "Turtle", so that the distinctive harbour ensemble comprising the "Giraffe", "Elephant" and "Turtle" can be preserved.
The so-called “Turtle” at the city harbour is in a poor state. This is evident from the hoardings currently surrounding the dilapidated concrete silo to protect against falling concrete debris. Renovating the old silo is proving to be far more complicated than originally thought. For this reason, the logistics service provider FIEGE – on whose site the "Turtle" stands – is planning to demolish and rebuild this iconic harbour landmark, complete with greenery.
“Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to carry out a restoration of the current ‘Turtle’ that will stand the test of time, because the building fabric and basic structure are in a desolate state”, says Kai Alfermann, Managing Director at FIEGE Real Estate. According to Alfermann, an attempt at restoration would offer no guarantee that the concrete silo could be preserved in the long term. “We have had this confirmed by a team of external experts, and unfortunately this is also borne out by the experience with the ‘Elephant’ on the neighbouring site, the refurbishment of which ultimately proved to be significantly more complex and took longer than initially planned.”
With a green shell in future: FIEGE plans to demolish the "Turtle" at the harbour, rebuild it and add greenery. (Visualisation: FIEGE)
In order to preserve the harbour’s industrial charm and its iconic ensemble – comprising the “Giraffe”, “Elephant” and “Turtle” – Fiege intends to demolish the old concrete silo next to the X-Dock and rebuild the “Turtle” on the same site. “We also want to add greenery to the ‘Turtle’ to give the new harbour promenade a slightly greener feel and create a more pleasant environment,” Alfermann explains.
Subject to the necessary planning permission being granted, demolition work is due to begin very shortly so as not to disrupt the city’s construction work on the southern side of the harbour. Completion of the new, green "Turtle" is scheduled for mid-2027 and is timed to coincide with the completion of the second phase of the new harbour promenade. Alferman says: “We are in close contact with the city and its planning office to ensure that the ‘new turtle’ fits perfectly into the surroundings of the new harbour promenade.”
