On the 21st of June, the city of Leuven hosted 196 visitors presented its ambitions for Constantin Meunierstraat at a well-attended information market on Hoornplein.
Within JUSTNature project, this street will be thoroughly redeveloped with ideas of the neighbourhood that will determine the appearance of the public domain. Residents can also help build a test set-up from the workshop, which will be set up in a section of the street in September.
"Constantin Meunierstraat offers many opportunities to increase the quality of life and road safety of the entire neighbourhood" said Alderman of Public Works Dirk Vansina. " In the co-design process with residents, we want to see their wishes and needs and test whether they are feasible. Our wish list already includes space for greenery, space for neighbourhood meetings, and places where rainwater can seep in."
The intervention aims to make the street greener, more road-safe, more pleasant and climate-resilient for local residents. additionally, it will seamlessly connect to the bustling Hoornplein. To provide inspiration on how we can organize the public domain, we are building a test set-up with the local residents that makes the future of the street tangible. This way, we can test what works and what doesn't. "After the summer, the test set-up with space for greenery, trees and meeting places can be found centrally in the Nieuw Kwartier, between Paul Lebrunstraat and Emile van Arenberghstraat."
The co-design process called Atelier Meunier has been working with the Nieuw Kwartier residents several times, helping the residents to get to know the project and discover the design of the set-up. In addition, they could also find out how the city supports the greening and climate adaptation of their own terrace or garden. "We also involve the residents in measurements and evaluations, such as traffic counts," added Alderman for Mobility David Dessers. "These kinds of projects to improve liveability, climate resilience, and biodiversity are exactly what we need to meet today's challenges."
The alderman of public green, Lalynn Wadera, concluded the workshop: "It is very innovative that in this way there will be extra space for future trees and more plants, shrubs and flowers in the heavily built-up centre of the city."
Stay tuned on these excited activities coming up in Leuven!
