Ghent (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Ghent expects 300,000 residents by 2040 and needs 20,000 new homes. Filip Watteeuw supports building in suburbs and post-WWII neighbourhoods; only 15% of seniors are willing to move.
Ghent is expecting a big population increase by 2040. They think the city will have 300,000 people living there. Ghent needs to build almost 20,000 new homes to make room for all these new people. But there’s not enough space in the city centre to build all those homes. They can only build about 13,000 homes there.
Officials mentioned that Ghent needs to find space outside the city centre to build the rest of the homes. The city is looking at areas outside the city centre, which they call “growth city” areas, to build new homes. They are doing this because they need to find space for the 6000 homes they can’t build in the city centre.
How will Ghent find space for 20,000 new homes by 2040?
Ghent is aiming to construct 6000 extra houses in zones beyond the city centre, which are referred to as the suburbs and sub-municipalities. Such places, such as Sint-Amandsberg, Wondelgem, Mariakerke, and Zwijnaarde, offer larger areas in relation to the crowded city centre.
Officials mentioned that by building new homes in these areas, the city hopes to offer people more choices about where they live. But they also want to make sure that these new areas are good places to live.
Ghent city official Filip Watteeuw believes that building new homes in the older neighbourhoods around the city centre is a good idea. These post-World War II suburbs have lots of houses with yards. Lots of the residents who occupy these houses are older, and their children are gone.
They don’t wish to relocate out of their community. Watteeuw thinks that the city should build new, smaller homes in these neighbourhoods so that these older residents can move to a smaller home without leaving their friends and neighbours.
Filip Watteeuw thinks that the city should build more homes in existing neighbourhoods by allowing people to build higher on their land. He mentioned adding extra floors to houses or dividing large properties into smaller ones. This would help the city use its land better and would also make it easier for young families to find homes.
Older residents could move to smaller, newer homes in their neighbourhood, and their larger homes would be available for young families. However, a study found that only 15% of older residents are willing to move.
“It is very clear that the policy must create more support for relocations. We need positive stories from seniors who take the step,”
Watteeuw concludes.
