HOUSING PROJECT IN RONSE (KERKPLEIN)

14 apartments / 3 offices

This housing project blends past and present. The challenge with this project lays in the urban planning context. The project is situated on the church square in a 19th century part of town, between the station quarter and the actual town centre. Towards the town centre, the square is dominated by a neogothic church. The former buildings consisted of a fragmented facade cladding, the buildings towards the rear however in no way matched the sumptuous expression of the facades, which meant this part of town was a great example of typical 19th century facade architecture. On the other side, the project area shares borders with a town park.

The block of flats was designed in such a way that it integrates into the urban context, combining a modern style and contemporary and durable materials, in deference to the required human scale and in due observance of the historical neighbouring sites. In spite of the fact that the facades were not listed, we chose to preserve the most valuable and defining elements and to incorporate them into the new concept. Typical of the urban context is the fragmented nature of the line of facades, which is not consistent in terms of architectural expression, and consequently acts to secure the small-scale character of the site. This serves to guarantee an architecture on a scale fit for humans. By confining the width of the architectural expression flanking the street, the town continues to remain a pleasurable environment to live in.