Bottelarij, Leuven, Belgium

On an old industrial site near the Leuven Vaartkom, the Sluispark and the Small Beguinage, we find the Bottelarij residential site. The neighbouring historical beguinage forms the basis of the language of colours and shapes used in this new project. Variations on the cobblestone alleyways, garden walls, limewashed facades and the green-coloured joinery are extended in the new urban fabric. As an honest building and structure of its time, the new building also seeks to contrast with the beguinage. Lintels accentuate the window openings and provide a certain friction between the linearity of the framework and the roughness of the bare façades.
In concrete terms, the site comprises single-family houses with a garden, flats and student studios. The latter are always the vertical 'extension' of a house. In fact, two floors have been placed on top of the family homes with units that can be reached separately via passerelles and - typical of this project - concrete external staircases.
Client
Virix
Architects
Robbrecht en Daem architecten, Styfhals architecten
Program
39 apartments and 56 houses with a garden
Location
Leuven, Belgium
Date
2014–…
Status
Ongoing
Floor Area
5155 m2
Team
Paul Robbrecht, Hilde Daem, Johannes Robbrecht, Trice Hofkens, Kim Poorters, Luc Beckstedde, Béatrijs Noppe, Tine Bulckaen, Tim Deltour, Bert Schellekens, César Watterlot, Sofie Weytjens, Esther Schepens
Landscape
ontwerpbureau Pauwels
Execution Architect
Styfhals & partners