Zelzate (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Zelzate will redevelop the former ISBO site into 49 residential plots, including 39 family homes, with Nick Neyt leading planning, featuring green spaces, parking, noise barriers, and traffic monitored by officials.
As VRT News reported, the municipality of Zelzate, in the province of East Flanders, Belgium, will turn the former ISBO adult education site on Assenedesteenweg into a new residential neighbourhood.
They mentioned that the area is abandoned, and the buildings are in poor condition. Plants grow over the structures, and trash is scattered across the courtyard. Officials say the site is an ideal location for development because it is no longer in use. The municipality plans to make use of the space without disturbing existing homes.
“We want to use the grounds of several of those dilapidated school buildings, the courtyards and also the former director’s residence for the new development,”
says Alderman for Housing Nick Neyt (Vooruit).
What plans does Zelzate have for the former ISBO school site?
The redevelopment plan will divide the site into 49 plots. The plots will include different types of housing to meet the needs of various residents. The project also plans to include green spaces and pedestrian-friendly streets.
“39 of these, the majority, will become family homes,”
the alderman said.
“That’s our priority: building affordable homes for families.”
“We’re creating several communal gardens and a private garden on the remaining 10 plots,”
Neyt explains.
“There’s also room for some greenery, a shared bicycle shed, and 47 parking spaces. Three of those are for people with disabilities.”
Officials mentioned that access to the houses will be provided via a residential street from Assenedesteenweg. Pedestrians and cyclists can also reach the neighbourhood through Kattenhoek and Kasteelstraat. Most roads in and around the neighbourhood will be built with permeable surfaces.
The project will include rainwater cisterns and wadis, which are green ditches designed to collect water and let it soak into the ground. Residents will also have access to underground waste containers to manage their trash.
A 3-meter-high noise barrier will be installed along the R4, and the Roads and Traffic Agency will build additional barriers along Berenbosstraat. The project was discussed at a recent city council meeting.
Council member Frank Bruggeman (Vlaams Belang) raised concerns about potential traffic congestion near the new neighbourhood. City officials said they will monitor traffic and other issues as the project moves forward.
“There’s already a busy intersection on Assenedesteenweg,”
said Bruggeman.
“Traffic will only increase once the new neighbourhood is built.”
The former ISBO adult education site on Assenedesteenweg in Zelzate covers about 10,200 m² and includes old buildings dating back to the 19th and 20th centuries. The area has long been designated as an important local and residential site in the municipal spatial plan of June 2007. Archaeological studies carried out in 2019 and finalised in July 2020.
