Martini Tower and downtown Groningen to be relit after years in the dark

Groningen's Martini Tower © Sophia von Seebach

A €1,000,000 investment into Groningen city center’s light grid will begin this summer and will modernize and implement more sustainable light fixtures, with the goal of making areas of the city more safe at night.

The iconic Martini Tower is a part of this city-wide project and has not been regularly lit since 2022, after energy costs saw a stark increase. After years of residents asking for the Martini Tower to be relit, the city has approved light renewal plans. The tower will be lit from the inside and the outside, with warm yellow lights at the base of the tower, and cool white light at the top. This will exaggerate the details of the facade of the building.

Speaking to The Glass Room, the Spokesperson for Mirjam Wijnja, an Alderman for Groningen said the changes will create “a more attractive and uniform light image” for the city. Furthermore, she said that the LED lights will consume approximately 10% of the energy that the current lighting system uses.

The city is not only making the transition to LED lighting, but will also be adding more lights to certain areas to promote security amongst residents and visitors, according to a letter from Mayor van 't Veld. The city currently has ‘road light’, which primarily is intended for traffic purposes. The new lighting plan will include a switch towards ‘living light’ and ‘city light’ principles, to give residents and visitors more security.

The lighting of the Martini Tower will be the most changed, and while the municipality expects that the implementation of these changes will begin this summer, the municipality is still waiting for the last few permits to be approved. Mirjam Wijnja said to OOG, “The Martini Tower is, of course, a monument- that means with the permits and that kind of thing you have to be careful.”

Diagram of the proposed lighting principles © Gemeente Groningen

Especially in the case of the Martini Tower, the lights will not only be around the buildings, but will be illuminating from the buildings. A spokesperson for an Mirjam Wijnja said that the lighting changes will “better express the qualities of the city center, but also contributes to the sense of safety of residents and visitors.”

Map of where lighting changes will occur © Gemeente Groningen

Although the overall appearance of the city was a consideration for the lighting changes, a spokesperson for Mirjam Wijnja said that crime and a concern for public safety were also factors in the decision to invest in a new lighting system for the city. She also said that the main areas of focus for these changes will be Gele Loper, Grote Markt and Martini Tower.

The concern for public safety could be in relation to a rise in crime in parts of the city. According to data collected by the city, there has been an increase in drug-related crime and reports of nuisances caused by homeless people, specifically in the area between the main train station and the Vismarkt.