Contemporary cohousing experiments in the Brussels-Capital Region

• Main Authors: Emmanuelle Lenel, François Demonty, Christine Schaut
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Université Saint-Louis Bruxelles 2020-02-01
• Series: Brussels Studies
• Subjects: housing; innovation; associative sector; poverty; regional policy
• Online Access: http://journals.openedition.org/brussels/4207

In recent years, cohousing projects have flourished in Brussels, particularly in the central working-class neighbourhoods, with the support of associations and certain political stakeholders. This article takes a closer look at the reasons for their success. Based on a two-year field survey of nine cohousing projects, it also analyses the architectural typologies associated with them and the ideological principles underlying them, as well as the uses made of them by the residents. In particular, the article highlights the discrepancies which may exist between a spatial vocabulary based on the desire to promote the creation of community life, and the uses and expectations of the targeted disadvantaged population.