Avenues Kersbeek, Bempt and Verrerie and square Bia Boucquet in Forest

Type of territory

The qualitative description of the territory and the context of the project are developed in the following document: https://www.construction21.org/belgique/data/sources/users/1952/20230221164807-voiries-foresttype-de-territoiredescriptifok.pdf

Climate zone

[Cwb] Mild, dry winter, cool and wet summer.

Green areas, roofs included

Green areas, roofs included : 1 620 m²

Public spaces area

Public spaces area : 12 050 m²

Total investment costs (before tax)

Total investment costs (before tax) : 1 923 911 € HT

Project holder

Name : Municipality of Forest

Type : City

General description :

Municipal public administration - Public Works Department (Roads, water, sustainable development and mobility services)

Project management

Description :

The project led by the municipality gave rise to consultation with local residents during public presentations prior to the permit file. These meetings, 3 in number, made it possible to learn about the demands and expectations of local residents in terms of developments (in particular the square), to answer questions and to integrate comments if necessary.

The design of the project was carried out by a duo made up of:

- a design office (MATRIciel) in charge of hydrological analyzes (existing situation and projected situation), ecological analyses, proposal and development of alternative management concepts for rainwater.

- an urban planning office (AGORA) in charge of mobility studies, the graphic transcription of the project, the proposal of development concepts, the development of specifications and site monitoring.

The entire design, and the following development phases, gave rise to exchanges and close collaboration with the different spheres of municipal and regional administration.

The project has developed in particular considering:

The 'rain meshes'

http://forest.irisnet.be/fr/services-communaux/gestion-de-leau/les-maillages-pluie

Flood control:

http://forest.irisnet.be/fr/services-communaux/gestion-de-leau/la-lutte-contre-les-floods

Project stakeholders

MATRIciel sa

Function  : Environmental consultancy agency

Sustainable development expert (water, biodiversity)

Sébastien BREELS, [email protected], +32 10 24 15 70

Construction21 company page :

 https://www.matriciel.be/projet/voiriesforest/

NOW

Function  : Urbanism agency

Urban planner, landscaper

François-Xavier Van Mael, [email protected], +32 2 413 00 71

Construction21 company page :

 http://agora-urba.eu/2023/02/18/reamenagement-des-voiries-kersbeek-bempt-et-verrerie-et-du-square-bia-boucquet-a-forest/

Melin Enterprises

Function  : Operator

Construction business

Frédéric Pieri - Directeur technique - [email protected] - 010 62 16 93

Construction21 company page :

 https://melinsa.be/

SOLUTIONS

• Parking management
• Water management
• Management of natural areas

Social inclusion and safety 

Improvement of the living environment through a complete restructuring of the roads and the safety of all users.

Several devices are put in place to slow down the speed and improve the circulation of pedestrians: widened sidewalks, the quality of the sidewalks increased, facilitates the movement of People with Reduced Mobility

Ambient air quality and health

The sound environment of the road system is currently conditioned by motorists passing through it.

The project does not significantly modify this factor: the asphalt used makes it possible to reduce the noise pollution caused by vehicles.

However, the noise pollution associated with raised devices involves sound fluctuations (braking, passing the device, accelerating when exiting), felt to be more annoying than the noise associated with the passage of a vehicle at constant speed but makes it possible to reduce the speed and increase safety.

SOLUTIONS

Living Environment Illustration

Mobility strategy

Maintaining the number of parking spaces as in the existing situation in total 83.

Bilateral and well-demarcated longitudinal location.

Tree pits with a dimension of at least 2x2m surround the parking spaces, protection around the trees is put in place.

Displacement of soft modes: in the existing situation, the sidewalks were in an unsatisfactory state (loose slabs, sunken areas, etc.).

Sidewalks of at least 2 m are implemented in order to ensure the pleasant movement of pedestrians.

Devices for the visually impaired are integrated into the sidewalks at pedestrian crossings. Sidewalk bends are provided at the crossings.

For the movement of cyclists, a marking on the roadway suggests their movement.

There is no public transport line that uses the roads.

SOLUTIONS

Mobility Strategy Illustration

Water management

Focus:

- collection of rainwater from roads and public spaces

- collection and storage in the parking pits and in the rain garden before deferred evacuation

- depollution of rainwater via bacterial degradation (stone pits and plantations)

- deferred evacuation via a separate network (separation of the sewage network to keep the water 'clean')

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

All runoff water is collected within a separate network and will be discharged into the natural environment (Bempt Park) via a siphon under the chaussée de Neerstalle (passage of the old Zandbeek stream).

To do this, several development solutions are implemented:

• The cross-sectional profile of the roadway is adapted so that rainwater runs off on the asphalt roadway beyond the streams of water into the parking spaces, where it can percolate instead of being evacuated directly to the surface. 'sewer. Ditto for runoff from sidewalks.
• The parking areas in draining pavers with gravel joints allow the percolation of water into a draining foundation block which stores and tempers the flow of water which is then evacuated via a network of drains.
• A new drainage network allows the water to be routed by gravity to the retention basins or directly to the new separative network which is connected to the siphon located on the Chaussée de Neerstalle.
• Installation of flow control device in access chambers of the separative network
• Retention basins and rain gardens are created to collect and locally store runoff water, while allowing phytoremediation via plants (filtering marsh).
• In order to guarantee a risk of the system overflowing during heavy storms, occasional drains are maintained on the roads in the traditional way (connection to the drainage system).

Soil management 

Focus:

- management of pollution from roads as far upstream as possible in the water management cycle (via drainage beds and planting in rain gardens)

- avoid any discharge of polluted water into the rainwater network and only discharge unpolluted clear water

- recharge of the natural environment with rainwater

SOLUTIONS

Description :

- collection of rainwater from roads and public spaces

- collection and storage in the parking pits and in the rain garden before deferred evacuation

- depollution of rainwater via bacterial degradation (stone pits and plantations)

- deferred evacuation via a separate network (separation of the sewage network to keep the water 'clean')

• Water management

Biodiversity and natural areas

Focus:

- protect existing ecological values

- strengthen and redeploy ecological values through road development (continuity of the green network) and the creation of habitats

- strengthen ecological connectivity (green network) and contribute to the improvement of walks

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

The redevelopment project makes it possible to create stronger ecological connections between the parks (Jacques Brel and du Bempt) and green spaces located nearby. On the one hand by increasing the proportion of vegetated surfaces in the public space and on the other hand by diversifying the environments and plant species.

The project is part of the municipal desire to create public spaces that give space to nature in the city and allow environmental awareness and education.

Nesting boxes for birds and bats, an insect hotel will be placed in the Square du Bia Bouquet.

Part of the Square du Bia Bouquet is home to a filtering marsh. This wetland is a very favorable environment for biodiversity by providing refuge and food for birds, amphibians, etc. The micro-organisms that will develop there will help clean up runoff water.

The plantations were selected for their landscape characteristics and their propensity to develop biodiversity on the site. To achieve this objective, native species are proposed because they best meet the needs of native fauna. In particular, they provide food for insects that play a major role in the balance of ecosystems because they are the basis of the diet of many birds, bats, small mammals, batrachians and reptiles. The fruits are eaten by birds and small mammals.

The alignments are made up of various species also to limit the spread of possible diseases.

SOLUTIONS

Description :

- protection of existing ecological values

- reinforcement and redeployment of ecological values through road development (continuity of the green network) and the creation of habitats

- reinforcement of ecological connectivity (green network) and contribution to the improvement of walks

• Biodiversity :

Climate adaptation, resources conservation, GHG emissions

The qualities that the project can highlight in particular on this theme are:

- Heat island management: urban comfort and comfort of peripheral dwellings (reduction of the risks of perceived heat and emissions potentially linked to cooling at building level) - the project creates shaded and green/planted external comfort places, constituting for the present and future of 'refuge' areas for both wildlife and neighborhood residents
- Planting of trees and largely vegetated areas (rain gardens; tree pits; landscaping of the square, etc.) contributing to CO2 capture and O2 production
- Improvement of infrastructures intended for soft mobility (pedestrians, cyclists, etc.) encouraging the non-use of motorized vehicles
- Major reduction in the discharge of rainwater to the sewage network (separation network) reducing the flow rates and volume to be treated by the treatment plants and, as a corollary, the related CO2 emissions

- preservation of the 'water' resource by creating a separative network dissociating 'wastewater' (sewer) and 'rainwater'. Rainwater will be returned directly to the natural environment after natural filtration in rain gardens and filtration swales (substrate and plants), without being mixed with wastewater. In this way, the 'water' resource is protected, groundwater recharged and the natural water network is fed.