Village Square Meer

Project Leader: Nele Vancaeyseele

Notes: Responding to this critical situation, a group of nine villagers initiated a movement that eventually grew into a broad collective, encompassing local entrepreneurs, regional social housing authorities, community welfare services, and the monuments and heritage sites administration, as well as an interdisciplinary design team comprising heritage architects (aNNo), urban planners (D+A) and architects (DAS). Through the combined efforts of the non-profit organisation Convent Meer and the social housing authorities, Bouwmaatschappij De Noorderkempen, the convent was successfully acquired in 2005. aNNo collaborated closely with the local collective to explore avenues for guaranteeing public use of the convent site. Their proposal envisioned the site as the village’s inaugural public square, with public amenities were thoughtfully arranged around it. At the same time, persistent advocacy at the heritage authorities resulted in the integration of new social housing unit, gracefully blended into the site’s edges. The Convent Meer site has been revitalised and has reclaimed its historical purpose as a place for collective living and community engagement. Village Square Meer has achieved a successful and enduring transformation by harmoniously combining historic and contemporary architecture and integrating public functions and social housing.