Restoration Bellemolen is running at full speed

If all goes well, the restoration of the historic Bellemolen in Essene should be completed this year. The works will then take a year and a half.

The Bellemolen dates from the 12th century and is best known for its restaurant. In the 1970s, many prominent people, from tennis legend Björn Borg to members of the royal family, came to eat in Pierre Van Ransbeeck's star restaurant. When that restaurant closed its doors, the building fell into disrepair. Among other things, the baker's oven, the large barns and the oil mill were in urgent need of restoration.

“The building was in very bad shape when we started. Some floors were even about to collapse. So a lot of dismantling work was required,” says Business Unit Manager Timber Toon Declercq. The restoration must restore the Bellemolen in all its glory. “What happens next is still a mystery. We only deliver the structural work. The owner can still furnish the building according to the function that the building will have,” says Toon.

The aim is to restore all buildings as authentically as possible. That is a time consuming job. “The roof trusses have been removed and are being shortened by 30 centimeters so that insulation can be installed,” says our site coordinator Yves Vanthournout. “The bad parts are replaced, but the aim is to keep as much as possible. That is why each particle is numbered so that we can puzzle everything together again and place it back.”

RingTv visited our yard: watch the video here .