WestergasfabriekOld factory, now a beautiful monument
Address: Haarlemmerweg 8-10 -
1000 AC - Inner City West/Haarlemmerbuurt & Western Isles
NH
Nearest Bus or Train:Van Limburg Stirumplein: tram 10; Van Hallstraat: bus 18; Nassauplein: bus 22
Open Hours:Not available
The Westergasfabriek (Western Gas Factory) is a former coal gasification plant. It is located just west of the city near both the railway line and the waterfront. Once natural gas was introduced in the mid-1960s, the plant became functionally obsolete. The Westergas plant closed in 1967. The gasworks site consists of nineteen buildings including an immense gas tank. Thirteen are protected as historic buildings under Dutch law. They were built between 1885 and 1905 in a neo-renaissance style, and thus have historical significance. Despite the residual contamination, the local district council, working with its project team and the community, built new relationships and strategies that helped design a new community park, preserved the historic buildings and established the Westergas as an international cultural venue.
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