Description
This building is located on a sunken road in Neder-Over-Hembeek, north of Brussels. It houses people with mental disabilities and is positioned near other facilities managed by the association that runs it. The project is designed as a large villa for 20 people. Its steeply sloping site offers two access levels to the building. The lower level, where it meets the street, includes the service areas, workshops, and staff rooms. The upper level, connecting to a communal garden, takes up the residents’ entrance, a common room, and additional workshops. The villa accommodates spaces that bring all the residents together, such as the dining room, multi-purpose activity rooms, and terraces. The residents live in family-sized clusters of five people. The specificity of these smaller units lies in their relationship with the outdoor spaces – whether a garden, a patio, or a panoramic roof terrace. In addition to these outdoor spaces, each cluster is equipped with a common living room and bathroom. Inside the clusters, each resident has a large 16 m² bedroom with a shower room and access to a balcony or a terrace. The façades are white plastered, with wooden elements marking the communal lounges and balconies. The bedrooms are fitted with white shutters.
Exterior view
Interior view showing communal area
Originally published in: Gérald Ledent, Alessandro Porotto, Brussels Housing. Atlas of Residential Building Types, Birkhäuser, 2023.