Ixelles - redevelopment of public spaces for the Athénée neighborhood contract.

Nestled within the vibrant municipality of Ixelles, the Athénée neighborhood has blossomed with urbanization and witnessed a significant growth of its local communities over the past decades. Yet, the area faces a challenge: numerous schools lack indoor cafeterias, sending a throng of lively students out into the streets during lunch breaks. Consequently, the neighboring public spaces yearn to transform into welcoming havens for children and teenagers, replete with urban furniture, inviting living spaces, and accommodating slow mobility. The metamorphosis of these public spaces is of utmost importance.

The study unveils a tapestry of nine micro-centralities, each exhibiting its own distinct characteristics, yet weaving together in harmony to achieve a shared vision: nurturing neighborhood tranquility, rebalancing the spaces for all communities and age groups, and gracefully introducing a new soft-mobility plan.

To breathe life into this vision, several creative tools and strategies have been employed. Shared streets transform into versatile stages, hosting a plethora of activities across different temporalities and illustrating how thoughtful design can inspire social dynamism and foster meaningful connections. The soft-mobility plan elegantly sidesteps the hustle and bustle of car traffic, carving out spacious paths for pedestrians and cyclists to roam freely.

Richer vegetation patterns provide not only an acoustic and visual sanctuary but also give birth to refreshing micro-climates, offering shade, purifying the air, and cooling public spaces. These verdant expanses also increase unsealed surfaces, inviting a reimagining of urban water cycles.

Rain gardens emerge as a vital element of the project, embodying the principles of integrated rainwater management by honoring natural flows and embracing exceptional weather conditions. Through the delicate dance of evapotranspiration and infiltration, rain gardens cultivate favorable environments for landscape ecologies and continuities, all while nurturing a flourishing urban biodiversity.