Festive Unveiling of the Construction Sign for the De Niervaert MFA

Last Thursday afternoon, Moerdijk City Councilor Bennie Blom, Vaessen Director Gert-Jan Vermeulen, and swimming instructor Petra Verreijen unveiled the construction sign at the Niervaert in Klundert. Petra Verreijen has been working at the pool for 26 years and has taught many residents how to swim at the Niervaert. A number of users and clubs were also present at the unveiling. This festive moment marked the official launch of the new Niervaert in Klundert.

A vibrant, welcoming downtown

A new multifunctional facility (MFA) called De Niervaert is being built in Klundert, featuring a recreational and competition pool, a sports hall, a conference center, and dining options. It will be a vibrant, accessible, and welcoming hub where residents, organizations, and future users can meet, play sports, learn, and relax. Construction of De Niervaert is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2027.

Councilman Bennie delved into the archives and spoke about the long lead-up to this wonderful project. “As an archivist and someone who is very interested in the history of this municipality, I simply couldn’t pass that up. The first plans for an indoor swimming pool in Klundert date back to 1972. The Terms of Reference for the new Niervaert were developed with the participation of the various stakeholders. We can be proud of the result. Funding from the ‘Nederwiek, offshore wind energy’ initiative is helping us realize and maintain this facility. “The new Niervaert will be a place where sports, culture, and community come together,” said Alderman Bennie Blom. Bennie Blom also noted that in the coming period, we will explore how the facility can be utilized to benefit the surrounding community. For example, could it serve as an energy hub for local organizations, or could it help meet the area’s heating and cooling needs? Through the “Net op zee” regional investment program, the municipality is receiving funding—partly from the European Union—to build and maintain the new Niervaert in Klundert. Sustainability is central to the new Niervaert. It features a compact and energy-efficient design that includes heat pumps and heat recovery systems for on-site energy generation. Circular and bio-based materials, such as wood and reused bricks, were also chosen. The surrounding area will be designed to be climate-resilient, incorporating green spaces, water retention features, and areas to support biodiversity.

Gert-Jan Vermeulen, director of Vaessen, explained that the new Niervaert is more than just a building. “The central entrance and the grand café will form the heart of the building. From there, visitors will walk to the sports hall, the swimming pool, and the event center. The preliminary design has now been completed. We will continue to work intensively on the design in the coming period with Van de Laar Consulting and our design partners Techniq B.V. and MoederscheimMoonen Architects, so that construction can begin early next year.”

Open House

On Thursday evening, May 21, there will be an open house from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Niervaert for anyone interested. This is a great opportunity to stop by and get an update on this project. Information will be available on topics such as the construction plan with its phasing, the preliminary design, and the schedule, along with an explanation of the procedure.

Curious to see what the new Niervaert will look like? Watch the video on the Vaessen website:
De Niervaert – Vaessen – Builders on the Move

Co-funded by

The Netherlands is working toward a sustainable energy system, in which wind energy from the North Sea is playing an increasingly important role. To bring this electricity ashore, new connections and modifications to the power grid are needed. In our region, this involves connecting the Nederwiek wind farm via the Amer River to Geertruidenberg. A converter station is being built there to make the generated electricity suitable for connection to the national high-voltage grid. The European Union and the national government are providing funding to ensure this energy infrastructure is carefully integrated into the surrounding environment. With these funds, regions can invest in projects that benefit nature, the living environment, the regional economy, and the energy transition. The implementation of the Niervaert project is made possible in part by this funding.