Research in Flanders

Thematic Paper

Urban Planning
For this thematic paper we talked to:

Jens Aerts, guest professor at the

Cosmopolis Centre for Urban Research,
Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and partner in
design agency BUUR

Luuk Boelens, director of the Centre

for Mobility and Spatial Planning
(the Centre for Mobility and Spatial
Planning) at the faculty of Engineering
and Architecture at Ghent University

Klaas Claeyssens, Department of Real
Estate - Land and Property Surveying at
University College Ghent
Tom Coppens, president of the research
group for Urban Development at
University of Antwerp
Thematic papers
The goal of the thematic papers is to present
Flemish scientific research internationally. They
focus on fundamental and applied research.
The thematic papers are published by Research
in Flanders, a project run by Flanders Knowledge
Area.

The project Research in Flanders is funded by the

Guy Engelen, project manager of the Flemish Government, Department of Foreign
Unit Environmental Modelling at VITO Affairs.
(Flemish Institute for Technological
Flanders Knowledge Area supports, through
Research)
different projects, the internationalization of
higher education in Flanders, Belgium.
Michael Ryckewaert, professor at the
Cosmopolis Centre for Urban Research,
Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and the www.researchinflanders.be
unit Architecture and Design at the
www.flandersknowledgearea.be
Department of Architecture, KU Leuven
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Urban Planning
Cross-pollination between
town and countryside

A city is part of the landscape. It has its own history, grows and blossoms in synergy with
its surroundings. In the past, political, military or local decision makers determined
what cities would look like. This is no longer the case these days. Societal challenges have
become too great. The voices from those on the ground are crucial when developing
zoning plans for neighbourhoods, towns, cities or regions, however visionary or
appealing they may be at first sight. That means it is necessary to listen to these voices.
What is going on in an area, city or region? What needs do its inhabitants and other
parties have? What criteria, trends and challenges have to be taken into account?

Developing spaces in cities and the surrounding countryside is more than ever a
question of management. Management of often very complex processes. Certainly
for Flanders and its cities, because the region is one of the most densely populated,
traffic-intensive and urbanised areas in the world. The cross-pollination between city
and countryside is the canvas that forms the backdrop for Flemish researchers, (urban)
planners and developers to shape developments and the planning of urban space in
Flanders.

Flemish knowledge and expertise in urban development and planning is distributed

across a wide range of bodies: the knowledge centres of the Flemish universities and
university colleges, the knowledge centre Vlaamse Steden/Thuis in de Stad (Flemish
Cities/At Home in the City), the planning departments and administrations for urban
planning in cities and municipalities, the Territorial Development Agency of the
Brussels Capital Region and private firms for (city) urbanisation and town planning.

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 © NASA

Flanders
Delta
-4-
In many ways, Flanders is a bizarre
habitat. A 13,682.38-km² piece
of land, part of the large Scheldt,
Meuse and Rhine river delta. One
great diamond-shaped area of light
stretching from the Randstad (the
Netherlands) over the Ruhr valley
(Germany) to Flanders marks the
delta by night on NASA satellite
photos. Everything goes dark from
Groningen in the north, Lille in the
south and Dortmund in the east.
The area is strewn with cities and
villages.
Zooming in, we also see villages and
hamlets, meadowland, agricultural
land, orchards, woodland, natural
areas and industrial estates next to
and amongst the large cities and
small towns. All of it intertwined
with a myriad of roads, streams
and rivers, motorways and railways.
Airports like pimples close to the big
cities. A landscape characterised by
sustainable and diversified economic
activity with 30 million people living
inside those contours. Flanders lies
smack-bang in the middle of it.
How to describe such an area? Is it
urban space like Mexico City, New
York, Manila or Shanghai with a
population of 20 to 25 million? Is
it a jagged natural area divided into
building plots? Or something in
between?
NASA satellite photos offer an
interesting perspective. Aerial
photos from twenty to thirty years
ago clearly show the enormous
evolution the area has undergone
in the last decades and is still
undergoing as we speak, together
with the people who live and work
in it.
Flanders as horizontal metropolis
Researching development processes
and dynamics in deltas like the Rhine,
Meuse and Scheldt river ones, is one
of Luuk Boelens’ hobby horses. For
the last two years, Boelens has been
the director of the Centre for Mobility
and Spatial Planning at Ghent
University, a multidisciplinary and
internationally oriented research
group within the Engineering and
Architecture faculty.
Boelens consciously breaks through
the distinction between city and
countryside when he talks about
urban development and planning
in Flanders. ‘Because,’ so he says,
‘today, all these different uses
within the delta that Flanders lies
in, have been integrated into one
great metropolitan area of urban,
peri-urban and rural elements
that strongly complement and
(potentially) strengthen each other.
That’s a typical pattern in river deltas
across the world. There’s no centrally
orchestrated space, like there is in
Paris, Moscow, London or New
York, but there is no nature anymore
either. It’s cultured nature, the
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landscape has been urbanised. And
a, what I call, horizontal metropolis
lives and grows in that landscape’.
By horizontal, Boelens does not mean
there should or can be no vertical
office buildings or tower blocks in
city or town centres, but ‘horizontal’
because everyone negotiates and
makes agreements with one another
within a very strong synergy
between city and countryside. And
that has been the case for centuries.
At the same time, there is a degree
of friendly competition between all
these parties: they compete with
each other whenever possible and
work together whenever necessary.
‘That’s why the region used to be
and still is so extremely innovative,
flexible and competitive, just like
other metropolitan deltas. And it’ll
probably carry on that way in the
future too,’ emphasises Boelens.
Seven challenges for society
Luuk Boelens sees seven great
social challenges for this horizontal
metropolis and its countryside,
which Flanders will have to tackle in
the coming decades:
1. climate change: everything to do
with flooding, draughts, urban
heat islands, changes to fauna
and flora, etc.;
2. energy transition: spatial
evolution and developments in
terms of process management
 in the area of sustainable energy
supply independent from fossil
fuels, including all shifts in
economic power blocks on the
world scene;
3. food production: more short
supply chain products and
urban farming than food im-
ported from all across the world;
4. ageing: current health care
facilities do no longer meet the
exponential growth of an ageing
population;
5. sustainable and synchro-
modal transport: transport
infrastructure in the Rhine,
Meuse and Scheldt river delta
does not have to be extended,
but used in a different and better
way - this means managing it
differently as well;
6. objective/subjective health: the
relationship between planning
and health and liveability in
urban areas has to be radically
rethought;
7. participative management:
no centrally controlled
management of space, but
management oriented towards
participation in all layers of
society.
All research into urban planning and
development will have to take these
challenges into account, according
to Luuk Boelens. Against this
backdrop, the Centre for Mobility
and Spatial Planning develops
practical contributions to research
that is relevant to policies. Attention
to urban planning, space and
mobility is crucial. At the moment
there are three projects up to speed.
• Living labs
A first research project is the
living labs. These are strategic
collaborations that research how the
flexibility and coping ability of local
companies, inhabitants and councils
in a particular area can be improved
when faced with changes in the
climate, growth of the population,
numbers of immigrants, daily
commutes or other variables. Living
labs make it possible to test urban
planning strategies and shape urban
environments in a more sustainable
way. At the moment the Centre
for Mobility and Spatial Planning
is running two living labs in the
provinces of Antwerp, East Flanders
and Flemish Brabant together with
KU Leuven and the University of
Antwerp.
• Heat islands
A second research project of the
Centre for Mobility and Spatial
Planning are heat islands in cities.
Boelens explains: ‘We completed
a study recently for the city of
Ghent. During the summer of 2012,
-6-
VITO researchers measured the
temperature in squares and streets
in and around Ghent. It emerged
that at night, air temperatures were
about 3 degrees higher and surface
temperatures 10 to 15 degrees higher
than in other towns in the vicinity
like Lochristi and Eeklo. Researchers
from the Centre for Mobility and
Spatial Planning then analysed these
results and compared them to health
data. They noticed that these urban
heat islands actually affect vulnerable
groups like the elderly, children, the
disabled and even immigrants in a
problematic way. We can work out
strategies to deal with these, based
on these results’.
• Synchromobility
Synchromobility is a new research
area the Centre for Mobility and
Spatial Planning is focusing on.
The challenge is to manage existing
mobility networks in different
ways. the Centre for Mobility and
Spatial Planning is researching
synchromobility in Flanders over
a period of two years on behalf
of the Flemish Strategic Research
Centre for Logistics and Mobility
(SOC LoMo). Boelens explains:
‘We want to gain an insight into
people’s mobility styles. Their daily
commute. How do fathers, mothers,
young people and employees go to
different places during the day, at
weekends or on holiday? Where do
they go? What routes do they take?’
Boelens continues: ‘We have already
accumulated an enormous database
with a vast amount of empiric data
and we want to link this to other
information, functional and spatial
patterns. Then we can extract spatial
mobility patterns and work out
strategies based on these. And we
want to do it for Flanders as a whole’.

More information

Centre for Mobility and Spatial

Planning (AMRP):

http://planning.ugent.be/en/

‘Research into urban planning and development

has to take societal challenges into account’

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How liveable
© VITO NV

is our
horizontal
metropolis?
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Is a provincial town like Mechelen
a town in its own right or is it an
integral part of the Antwerp-
Brussels metropolitan axis? Looking
at satellite images of Flanders, it
seems one great big synergetic city.
What will this synergy look like
in 40 years? How does a city grow
as an autonomous body? A city’s
dynamics and growth are not really
acted out inside the city these days,
but mainly outside of it.
Urban growth scenarios
The synergy of city and countryside
is a privileged research domain for
the Unit Environmental Modelling
at VITO (the Flemish Institute for
Technological Research). ‘This
synergy is very significant,’ stresses
Guy Engelen who is responsible for
the project. Together with his team
of 12 strong, he uses mathematical
models to map out this synergy.
One of these is the so-called
RuimteModel Vlaanderen which he
uses to try and predict how spaces
amongst and around cities will
continue to evolve. The cellular
automata theory forms the basis for
these models. Engelen maps out the
dynamics of areas by zooming in on
land areas or cells with a resolution
of 1 hectare. To research air quality
in a particular area, for example, or
potential ground water pollution
or the risk of flooding as a result of
dynamics in land use, he enters the
right indicators and necessary data
that reflect the current situation
into the models. Mathematical
formulas then allow the models
to calculate a situation for next
year, using this year’s. By applying
these same formulas repeatedly,
the models spontaneously generate
growth patterns reflecting evolution
processes for the area in the future,
for example for the next 30 to 40
years.
Looking at living space under a
magnifying glass
Engelen explains: ‘What are the
functions the available space would
best be used for in the future? That’s
the million dollar question. Our
models take into account about 37
different kinds of uses in Flanders.
Twelve of those are oriented
towards socio-economic activities:
residential areas and the industrial,
tertiary and quaternary sectors.
We calculate evolving population
and employment densities for each
of these. How many people live
and work in the area we research
at the moment and certainly how
many will do so in the future? We
also look at urbanisation density.
How will Flemish cities develop
if the government were to decide
not to use extra space for urban
functions from 2020? This means
an increase in population density
and more efficient use of available
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space, not only in cities, but also in
the countryside. We will probably
need to start living more closely
together. The great question is
where, in which densities, to what
extent accessible to other functions
and mixed with them?’
Engelen continues: ‘Another
indicator is housing. What spaces
are built up and which are not?
Are they all linked together or are
there some open spaces amongst
them? Are the open spaces natural
as well as agricultural land? This
indicator is rather focused on
nature managers and farmers. We
can include suitable indicators in
the model when someone wants
to get an image of one particular
aspect of an area’.
Engelen uses his models to support
administrative bodies such as
Ruimte Vlaanderen (Flemish
government) or the urban plan-
ning departments of cities and
provinces. The Belgian province
of Limburg, for example, engaged
Engelen’s team to go in search of
suitable space for extra regional
industrial estates in urban areas
and specific economic nodes in the
province. For the Agentschap voor
Natuur en Bos (Flemish Nature and
Forestry Agency) of the Flemish
government, the team researched
how different habitat types can be
integrated into Flanders’ protected
natural areas. The researchers have in the future. And they are
take into account the EU’s strict valuable instruments for designers
prerequisites, but also the needs and and town planners too, because
wishes from stakeholders such as they are obliged to look at cities and
farmers, land owners, companies, urbanisation as part of an integrated
nature managers and other parties system. If a planner sets up a
using these spaces. project in a city today, it’ll also have
consequences for its outskirts and
Scenarios for the future
outlying areas and vice versa. A city
All of this gives us an image of is one part of a much larger whole
how Flanders is developing, based and that’s often underestimated’.
on known or potential trends and
the region’s existing or alternative
policies. But the team at VITO
also looks on a much broader level
and calculates future scenarios,
just in case Flanders were forced
to develop in a different societal
context. The team has been engaged
in the preparation of the new
Ruimte voor Ruimte Vlaanderen
policy which translates as Space for
Space. How does Flanders see its
future? Will we follow the American
trend where private initiatives will
determine planning policy much
more than the government? Will
we find ourselves in a globalised
world scenario or will we evolve
towards spaces planned in a rather
regionalised way? What is the role
and reach of centrally controlled
policies in each of these situations?

Engelen explains: ‘We also

calculated a scenario where the
EU controlled part of urban
planning, just like it does for the
environment now. What would
these possible social trends mean
for the way Flanders will deal with
the environment, energy, mobility © VITO NV
and population developments?
More information
With our mathematical models and
scenarios, we give policy makers VITO, Unit Environmental Modelling:
an image of the effect policies will
https://vito.be/en/land-use/land-use
- 10 -
Urban
governance:
a discipline
in its own
right

- 11 -
According to Tom Coppens,
president of the research group
for Urban Development at the
University of Antwerp, there are
two distinct directions in the vast
domain of city development and
urban planning. Coppens explains:
‘It’s a duality unique to all course
programmes in this domain. Urban
development is closely related to
architecture, but urban planning
is very closely related to the social
and political sciences. Planners
investigate all kinds of aspects and
phenomena connected to urban
planning and they publish articles
about them in journals that also
publish research by geographers
and sociologists’.
Managing complex urban projects
A new niche has been asserting
itself in between city development
and urban planning: urban
governance, the art of managing
complex projects in urban areas.
Urban governance has grown into
a separate professional discipline
altogether.
What is it about exactly? ‘Well,’
explains Tom Coppens, ‘most
developers know how to get
financing for one building, but
things become much more complex
when it comes to projects involving
entire streets, new neighbourhoods,
parks, residential zones and public
facilities. The redevelopment of
the Heizel, Reyers and canal zone
sites in Brussels or the Spoor
Noord park and the quays in
Antwerp are grand projects that
take a long time to complete. And
they are very complex in terms of
financing, most often also crossing
municipal boundaries. This means
they involve many parties from the
public and private sphere. And there
are various levels of governance
that have to be taken into account
as well: local councils, city councils,
the province, Flanders itself, often
the EU too’.
The great challenge is to find a
consensus amongst all these parties,
preferably in a structured way. And
this does not always go smoothly.
Complex projects like these often
last longer than planned. Why is
that and what can be done to avoid
it? To answer this question, Tom
Coppens and his team recently
analysed allotted times for a total
of 1,300 projects. Coppens explains:
‘Our research showed that lack of
consensus is the most important
factor for delays’.
Coppens’ research team also
analysed what the effect of
participation from locals was on
decision making and the time it
took to complete the projects. For
his PhD Coppens analysed the
effect of action committees on large
projects. To do its research, the team
- 12 -
applies methods and theoretical
models used in sociology, political
and management sciences: surveys,
in-depth interviews, focus groups
and statistical analysis.
The complex projects decree
Flemish researchers, town and
urban planners have already
gathered a lot of knowledge in
managing complex urban projects
through trial and error. The Flemish
government has now also lent a
hand: on 23 April 2014, the Flemish
parliament adopted the Decree
concerning Complex Projects
(Decreet betreffende complexe
projecten). It was the direct result
of the deadlock which a number
of large urban projects in Flanders
had reached. The decree offers a
new approach, precisely to avoid
delays and endless discussion. From
now on, it is mandatory for the
local population, users, employees,
interest groups, advisory and
governmental bodies to thoroughly
consult each other in advance.
The Oosterweel Link in Antwerp is
exemplary of this process. A bridge
across the Scheldt river to relieve
the Antwerp ring road and provide
a solution to the city’s huge traffic
problems. The project received the
necessary attention on a European
and international level, but has
now become a protracted symbolic
matter for the city. Why? Coppens
explains: ‘From the beginning, the
Oosterweel Link was only looked at
from the perspective of Antwerp’s
congestion problem. This one-sided
approach caused a lot of resistance
amongst locals, because it’s also
and mainly about the impact of
road infrastructure on quality of
life in the city. The project didn’t
take that into account in its starting
phase. People are now working
on adjustments and alternatives
under pressure from a number of
committed stakeholders. And this
means years of delay’.
Brussels, a chapter in its own right
• From neighbourhood
contracts ...
Not only large-scale projects benefit
from strong support amongst
the local community. ‘Taking the
pulse of what’s happening in a
particular neighbourhood, town or
city also forms the basis for every
small-scale town development
project,’ says Jens Aerts, affiliated
to Cosmopolis (Vrije Universiteit
Brussel) and partner in BUUR
design agency. ‘Monitoring is well-
known ground for geographers
and sociologists. They research the
capacities of neighbourhoods, their
users and inhabitants. They analyse
all kinds of indicators, such as social
make-up and education levels of
the local population, economic
activity, clubs, percentages of social
housing, unoccupied properties,
infrastructure, presence of schools,
green areas, companies, etc. Using
these statistics, we can see which
neighbourhoods have negative or
weaker factors and which of those
the government can invest in’.
To revalue vulnerable areas in
Brussels, the Brussels Capital
Region launched the so-called
neighbourhood contract as its most
important tool. These contracts
are executed in partnership with
the municipalities and concern
housing (through public bodies
or in collaboration with the
private sector), public spaces,
infrastructure and facilities in
the neighbourhood, as well as
economic and social initiatives.
Brussels has been launching four
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of these neighbourhood contracts
every year since 1999. At the start
of 2010, neighbourhood contracts
were converted into sustainable
neighbourhood contracts, with
greater emphasis on sustainable
development and participation
from the local population.
Jens Aerts considers this a logical
evolution: ‘In the past, the emphasis
used to be on master planning
with large morphological and
typological surveys or the small-
scale development of empty plots of
land. Now, the emphasis is rather on
engaging the local population, clubs
and other parties in the transition
process, and creating alliances to
define programmes and the design
agenda against this backdrop’.
 • ... to territorial development
People driving or riding through
Brussels these days won’t be able to
ignore it: Belgium’s capital is going
through a real revival. After 15 years’
experience with neighbourhood
contracts, it’s time to move up a
gear. The Brussels Capital Region
created the Territorial Development
Agency (ATO) especially to help
guide the city’s large projects. A
multidisciplinary team of architects,
planners, legal professionals, geo-
graphers and economists provides
guidance for some ten large projects.
Think of the Tour & Taxi site, the
redesigning of the Wetstraat/Rue de
la Loi (awarded to French architect
and urban planner Christian de
Portzamparc). Or the entire area
around the South Station. A master
plan was finally put together
recently to redesign the canal zone.
More information
Research Group for Urban Development, University of Antwerp:
https://www.uantwerpen.be/en/rg/research-group-urban-
development/about-us/mission/
Cosmopolis, Vrije Universiteit Brussel:
http://www.cosmopolis.be/
BUUR:
http://www.buur.be/buur_eng
The Reyers site with its future Media
city is a project that has attracted
lots of interest - also from abroad.
It is a strategic spot stretching
across the territories of three
municipalities around the capital.
ATO appointed an international
team to shape the area in a practical
way. French architecture and town
planning firm François Leclercq has
taken the lead over the team under
supervision from ATO. The firm
made a name for itself working on
important projects such as Paris
Nord-Est, Euro-Méditerranée in
Marseille and Le Bois Habité in
Lille. The site will house, amongst
others, the new headquarters of the
two Belgian public broadcasters
VRT and RTBF (with a total surface
area of 90,000 m²), 250,000 m² of
housing and all the infrastructure
needed for this new area of the city.
And there is also space for a great
regional park, the Reyers park.
- 14 -
From idea to
© BUUR

practical
execution
The crucial
role of
developers
- 15 -
Developers are the third major
link in the chain of renewal and
development projects in cities,
next to town developers and urban
planners. ‘But as long as they can’t
apply them to specific projects,
developers can’t use theoretical
publications based on science,
sociological or mathematical
models or surveys about quality
of housing and life and social
networks. If the practical key to
the development story is missing,
they can’t do anything with all
that information,’ explains Klaas
Claeyssens from the Department
of Real Estate - Land and Property
Surveying at University College
Ghent. ‘When developers are offered
a piece of land, they want to design a
profitable project for it that provides
added value for the city’s fabric.
They want to know what demand
there is, what they can build and
how much it will cost. There’s a great
gap in communication between the
macro world of the town developers
and urban planners and the micro
world of developers. And we want
to close it’.
Developers use discounted cash
flows to calculate the feasibility
of construction and renovation
projects. Based on these discounted
cash flows, they decide whether a
project is profitable for them, which
changes they can propose to achieve
better adjustment to available needs
or to make the project profitable,
and whether they can actually carry
it out at all. A project can be ever
so well thought out from the point
of view of town development, be
logically founded on a particular
planning vision and have an eye for
quality, but if it is not profitable, a
developer will not commit to it.
Claeyssens and his department do
very practical research, directed at
specific developers, small and large
scale. Claeyssens explains: ‘We
research how profitable real estate
projects are, so that the right projects
can be carried out effectively in the
right places. Unoccupied or unsold
properties for too long due to wrong
anticipations are not an option.
The speed of sale for properties is
one of the essential indicators for
any developer. If properties sell
fast, supply and demand are well
balanced. This market mechanism
makes sure rare development
opportunities are not underutilised’.
The dialogue between developers
and the government
STEDENS is a research project to
bring land surveyors, developers
and parties providing the building
permit closer together. The project
aims to acquaint building permit
providers with the economic and
financial aspects of developers while
it attempts to make developers from
their side consider the needs of
specific environments and building
permit providers’ criteria. The aim
is to develop a script, a kind of best
- 16 -
practice, addressing all the criteria
in the development process, before
the first sketch is even submitted.
These criteria do not only relate
to the location, but also to the
typology of the neighbourhood, the
dwelling density, the need for local
facilities such as corner shops, the
presence of quality green spaces,
general integration into the urban
fabric, the conceptual qualities an
environment can carry, etc. All of
them are elements that have to be
worked out at the start of a project.
Claeyssens explains: ‘These days
there is still a risk that the one who
has to grant the building permit
rejects the application because the
developer has misunderstood the
aim of the project or because there
is an effective mismatch between
created supply and the needs that
are present. Then the developer has
to start all over, although he has
often bought the land already and
pre-financed the consulting firm,
so that the financial possibilities
during the designing process have
already been jeopardised. The
procedure for obtaining permits
can be made significantly shorter
if the developer and the permit
provider can be convinced of their
common goal. That way qualitative
aspects, healthy profitability and
optimal allocation of finances can
all be joined together and you’ll
get a win-win situation for all the
parties involved’.
Revaluation
A second line of research focuses
on revaluating shopping streets
in town or village centres. It is a
problem faced by all communities,
towns and cities but which they
don’t always know very well how
to tackle. Primary locations in
town or village centres are usually
no problem at all, but outside of
those, there is often a considerable
turnaround of shops, offices and
other kinds of property uses. ‘With
our research, we can give cities and
communities interesting ideas for
revaluing such secondary locations,’
says Claeyssens.
Claeyssens thinks the most
important thing in this kind of
dossiers is constructive dialogue
with all interest groups involved
in them. He likes to refer to a
revaluation project of an old
shopping street in Antwerp city
centre. An innovative real estate
firm proposed to talk to the owners
of the empty properties in the
street. Claeyssens explains: ‘The
problem of unoccupied properties
was tackled in two ways. On the one
side with a rental formula divided
More information
Department of Real Estate - Land and Property Surveying, University College Ghent:
http://expertise.hogent.be/en/organisations/vakgroep-makelaardij-en-landmeten(56852876-9b3e-4a81-
bdfd-1e558f109751).html
into several stages. For example a
quarter of the rent in the first year,
half in the second year and so on.
That way interested start-ups got the
chance to get going and to grow. On
the other side they looked for start-
ups that more or less complemented
each other. That way they created a
certain interaction between the toy
shop, the bicycle shop, a café, an
organic baker, a coffee house here
and there, etc. These start-ups were
able to begin renting cheaply and
made for healthy cross-pollination.
It was only a short time before the
street livened up completely’.
Another area of application is
changing streets or areas designed
to old planning patterns. This can
be done with easy tweaks, such as
adding one or two extra floors.
Extra floors mean projects become
more profitable for developers,
housing pressures are dealt with in
better ways and the urban fabric
improves.
Claeyssens wants to grow his
department further into a know-
ledge centre which cities, councils
and developers can turn to if
they want to tackle very practical
- 17 -
problems. He also takes know-
how from other research groups
on board, based on gathered
information and details. For example
the Business and Information
Management department of
University College Ghent for
its experience in e-commerce,
retail and large retail chains. Or
the Urbanity and Community
Development research group - also
of University College Ghent - when
it comes to studying social fabrics
in city neighbourhoods. He also
uses collaborations with university
departments for particular specific
analyses of geographical and
morphological data. ‘That way
we can create scientifically based
knowledge that can be translated
directly into practice and where the
work needs to be done,’ he adds.
The development
of our horizontal
metropolis
says Michael Ryckewaert, lecturer
and affiliated to Cosmopolis, the
Centre for Urban Research at Vrije
Universiteit Brussel, and the Unit
of Architecture and Design at the
Department of Architecture, KU
Leuven.
Flemish government came with
significant subsidies. Concrete
plans were made to give some
thirteen Flemish cities a major
facelift. Some projects have been
carried out by now, while others
are still going on’.

The horizontal metropolis as we In his PhD dissertation entitled In recent years there has been
know it in Flanders today, is the Building the economic backbone lots of research into the history
result of unchecked economic of the Belgian welfare state (2011), of cities and the development of
growth after World War II. The Ryckewaert gives us a piercing urban planning after WWII. The
petrochemical industry boomed in image of policies for infrastructure, domain was until recently a blind
the harbour of Antwerp. Major car planning and architecture after spot in Flanders and Belgium as a
brands built assembly plants in the WWII. These three ingredients whole. But the entire development
cities of Vilvoorde, Genk, Ghent formed the basis for the economic of living in and certainly working
and Antwerp. All attention went to backbone of the Belgian welfare outside the city, planning, policies
developing grand infrastructure, state between 1945 and 1973. and economic development has
motorways and industrial estates. Ryckewaert explains: ‘The fairy tale in the meantime been very well
The image of the middle classes lasted until 1973, the year of the documented. These are great
living and working in cities was first oil crisis which ended the era of debates, internationally too.
substituted by the baby boomers
unseen prosperity. And it was only Research into urbanisation outside
who wanted to build their own
by the 1990s that organised urban major cities is precisely one of
homes and commute to work
renewal gathered pace once again. the specialities where Flemish
on the industrial estates in their
The Sociaal Impulsfonds (SIF) tried scientists make a difference.
own cars. The urbanisation of the
to hand deprived neighbourhoods
countryside around the urban More information:
in Flemish cities a new lease of
centres, so-called suburbanisation,
life with neighbourhood and
gathered speed. Cosmopolis, Vrije Universiteit
integration projects. Soon it
Brussel: http://www.cosmopolis.be/
‘But people at that time lost changed its strategy to focus on
track of the qualities cities had. city renewal policies directed at Unit Architecture and Design,
Because the urban population physical projects. Areas around Department of Architecture, KU
left the centres for the outskirts, railway stations and working class Leuven: http://architectuur.kuleuven.
town centres started to crumble,’ neighbourhoods were tackled. The be/onderzoek/design/?lang=en

- 18 -
 Author: Jan Van Pelt

The thematic papers are published

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FLANDERS KNOWLEDGE AREA by Research in Flanders, a project
run by Flanders Knowledge Area.

The project Research in Flanders is

our knowledge
makes the difference
RESEARCH IN FLANDERS
funded by the Flemish Government,
Department of Foreign Affairs.
Flanders Knowledge Area supports,
through different projects, the
internationalization of higher
education in Flanders, Belgium.

Ravensteingalerij 27 – bus 6
1000 Brussel
T. + 32 (0)2 792 55 19
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D/2014/12.812/3

Editions
1. Materials Science
2. Urban Planning
3. Industrial Design
4. Research in Times of Crisis
- 19 -
© NASA