Previous to the valorization of its former brewery, AB Inbev has charged BUUR in 2002 with the elaboration of a masterplan for the canal district in Leuven (Vaartkom). The ‘Vaartkom’ is no longer the industrial employment cluster that it used to be, but it still has some major assets to be developed as a mixed urban area: its location within the ring road, its excellent accessibility, the available space, the historic heritage, the canal…
The masterplan will fully exploit all the assets of the area and transform it into a new, modern center for the city of Louvain. The design will reconnect the neighbourhood to the old town without losing its identity. The unique conditions will result into innovative programs, construction and public spaces. The masterplan foresees the development of a mixed construction program totaling 450.000 m².
BUUR has elaborated a consistent development strategy. The features and the redevelopment possibilities of the different sites of the ‘Vaartkom’ will be based on a global urban vision and explored through design research. The global reorganization of the traffic will create a pedestrian friendly space around the ‘Vaartkom’ and reinforce the public space. By opening the ‘Dijle’, the ‘Vaartkom’ will not only get the necessary green space but also be connected to the center of Louvain.
After the approval of the masterplan, the city of Louvain has assigned BUUR as project manager for the implementation of the redevelopment. The assignment consists in the elaboration of an action program; the concertation with the different players involved; the preparation of the public-private cooperation. It also includes further program assessment, phasing, sensitization and the drawing up of a Spatial Execution Plan… In July 2007, the project has received subsidies from the Flemish Government stemming from the funds of town redevelopment (‘stadsvernieuwingsfonds’).
The transformation of the ‘Vaartkom’ into a vivid part of town has started by a number of important realizations: the headquarters of Inbev; the multifunctional construction blocks functioning as a new water front; and the conversion of the former brewery De Hoorn into a business center of creative companies, where the new offices of BUUR are located. The first phase of the development ‘Tussen Twee Waters’ in the eastern part of the area has begun by the construction of the ‘Balk van Beel’. The project developer ViRiX has acquired the old Inbev site situated in the western part of the ‘Vaartkom’, consisting of the bottling site, the brewery’s former headquarters and the buildings located between the ‘Vaartstraat’ and the ‘Sluisstraat’. BUUR has been assigned to optimize the masterplan within the context of the boundary conditions of the SEP, in accordance with the environment quality, the construction program and the development strategy.
