Gilly - Revitalization of the Destrée Neighborhood | Wallonie-Bruxelles Architectures

Momentary association

Programme: Transformation of a former parking lot into a green public space.

About: Situated in the periphery of Charleroi, Gilly is a former industrial town. It’s central urban area is made of an open air parking surrounded by different public buildings totally disconnected from the public space. EUROPAN 13 has launched a competition for an urban development of the Destrée Neighborhood, the central part of Gilly. As a laureate, CENTRAL was invited for a second competition to propose an operational project. To achieve an in-depth mutation at the level of the central neighborhood of Gilly we propose to take advantage of the potentials and logics of the site. The project is based on three structuring ecologies. The urban forest, an urban ecosystem in the very heart of the city which reconnects different surrounding urban fragments. Place Destrée, a former open-air car park becomes a vast square that can host various events. Finally, a renovated sports complex is extended and redirected to the public space with a new pavilion dedicated to boxing and collective activities. Next to those three strong ambitions a series of ‘tailor-made’ actions is implemented. These actions make it possible to complete and reinforce the overall plan of the district and to intervene directly on existing buildings. Acting like acupunctures, these interventions are designed to suit each situation. Sometimes light, sometimes more interventionist they foster relationships and interactions neglected until then.