The Peterbos 9 project in Anderlecht, Brussels, concerns the renovation of a building with 80 social housing units and 4 small commercial spaces, as well as the residential tower number 9 of the Peterbospark, which is part of a large social housing development from the 1970s.

The complex and sometimes difficult social context of the site highlights the urgency of such renovation and upgrading. Given the fragility of the context, the project insisted on executing the renovation with an occupied site to avoid the need for a complete relocation of the residents. All decisions about interventions inside the building were aligned with this construction site situation in mind.

The design of the project is twofold:
On the one hand, it renews the technical equipment and (common) interior spaces of the existing building.
On the other hand, it introduces an independent structure on both long facades, adding a winter garden to each apartment located on the upper floors. The ground floor spaces are extended to the rear façade while a second access to the entrance halls is created. On the south façade, the ground-floor space is implemented to be used for neighbourhood activities with a double-height extension at the southeast corner.

We consider a project such as Peterbos 9, not an exception but possibly an approach that may be repeated on similar types of social high-rise or mid-rise housing from that period.

This can be achieved if the spatial and technical interventions which are proposed focus on the specific problems posed by the building topology, allowing the project to put forward extremely precise purposeful interventions that are also economically feasible.

The specific intervention in the structure of the building allows to create a sustainable renovation with great added value at a cost significantly lower than the cost of a new construction. Such an approach strives for an optimal minimum, realizing as many qualities as possible within what is economically reasonable, thus creating a project that can serve as a model for other projects, ultimately leading to an extensive improvement in the quality of this existing typology of housing.

For the client, it allows to create a greater number of well renovated and transformed homes with the same budget. For the resident, it allows for an increased sense of care and appreciation given the new generous and comfortable home available within the existing familiar environment.

• Location

  Anderlecht, Belgium

• Client

  Beliris + Foyer Anderlechtois

• In collaboration with

  Lacaton & Vassal

• 51N4E project team

  Johan Anrys, Jan Opdekamp, Ruben Janssens, Paul Steinbrück, Janik Beckers, Yann Gueguen, Matteo Frangi, Anton Parys, Pu Hsien Chan, Marta Petrov, Aurèle Rattez, Olga Konstantinovic

• 51N4E involvement

  Full process, design and follow-up of the project, coordination with the neighbourhood contract

• Consultants

  B4F (Energy), ABO Consult (Asbestos), VUB (sustainability/circularity)

• Structural engineer

  BAS nv

• Main Contractor

  Louis De Waele

• Budget

  14 million euros

• Programme

  80 social housing units (2-bedroom apartments) with 4 ground floor spaces (2 commercial spaces and 2 spaces with social program)

• Site surface

  1.648,67 m²

• Built surface

  11.932,13 m²

• Photography

  Sepideh Farvardin

• Design

  2018-2021

• Execution

  2022-2024