Around 1555, a decision was made to extend the city's defensive fortifications against Turkish raids to include the municipal port.

A site called Pristan ("quay") or Lent had earlier developed outside the walls, serving as the mercantile center of old Maribor.

Until the construction of the Carinthian railway between Maribor and Klagenfurt in 1863, the Benetke port building saw annual eastward-bound traffic of up to 800 šajke (characteristic local barges) and 1200 rafts.

Much of the old urban core of Maribor was due to be submerged in the resultant reservoir, including the Water Tower, which was originally slated for demolition so as not to pose a hazard to navigation.

The tower was saved by the efforts of builder Jože Požauk (1908–1995), who directed a project to raise the 1500 t mass by 2.6 metres over seven months in 1967 and 1968.