Manchester

Redevelopment and renovation of the former Graffe Sugar Factory into a cultural hub and centre for the community

The Manchester and Birmingham streets in Molenbeek connect a chain of creative places of the neighbourhood: Charleroi Danse, Bar Recyclart, Vaartkapoen, Jozef Wouters’ Decoratelier and the Bodega. In this context, the Brussels Capital Region wants to redevelop and renovate the industrial buildings on the sites of Manchester Street n° 13-19 and Birmingham Street n° 30 in order to turn them into a hub for artistic and cultural production. Among the objectives of the project, fundamental are: the revaluation and preservation of the rich industrial past of the buildings, making the city block more permeable to the public and attractive to pedestrians, the creation of place for interaction among the multiple initiatives in the Heyvaert neighbourhood. The project, not only tries to answer the need for more community infrastructures, yet also also envisions more qualitative green outdoors and public space for the local residents. The project fits within the framework of the Urban Renewal Contract (CRU) Heyvaert-Poincaré.