The project is being coordinated by the city development company sogent, AGION (the Flemish Agency for Infrastructure in Education) and the City of Ghent. It involves a total investment of about 10.7 million euros. 71.5% of the cost of the boarding house and 81.5% of the school building are subsidized by AGION.
The new school infrastructure will be on the site of the demolished buildings on the side of Henri Story Square. All the large trees will be preserved. The school building will accommodate Freinet School De Sassepoort – Spoor 9, an urban school for special primary education currently housed in outdated buildings on Beveland Street. There will be room for 88 pupils.
The city boarding school for color and primary education currently already has a branch on Henri Storyplein, but the Brugse Poort department is moving from the old buildings on Olijfstraat to the new building on Storyplein. There will be room for 56 children there.
Low incentive finishing
In the layout of the design, extra attention was paid to the specific needs of children and the neighborhood. A low stimulus finish was opted for and part of the building will also be public. In the school building there will be several youth rooms. The school, boarding school, youth clubs and the neighborhood can also share some spaces.
This sustainable passive building has no gas connection; all energy is generated with heat pumps and solar panels. The city of Ghent also opts for sustainable materials, such as aluminum exterior joinery, facing bricks, floor tiles and linoleum. Finally, extra attention is paid to healthy air. An innovative ventilation system adapts to the number of people in the room.
