In Brussels, Community Land Trust Brussels (CLTB) is working with two owner-occupants who have agreed to experiment with the Upcycling Trust model. These two projects share several characteristics: the owners face a risk of “renoviction”, they have committed to the Upcycling Trust initiative for its values, and both pilot projects are located in Saint-Gilles, a neighbourhood of Brussels that isunder considerable pressure of gentrification.
The first pilot project involves renovating a small apartment in a three-unit co-ownership. The owner-occupant is unable to renovate his home and is experiencing energy poverty. This situation risks worsening. He could face a fine, hinder the co-ownership's renovation, and ultimately be forced to sell his home. The owner is deeply attached to his home and wishes to continue living there, as it also provides him with security in his life as an artist.
The second pilot project aims to bring up to standard and renovate a house comprising two housing units and an office/commercial space, owned by an owner-occupant. The building is currently in a state of disrepair. The owner-occupant is unable to renovate her property, risking the involuntary loss of her home through a forced sale.
Community Land Trust Brussels and its partner, CAFA, support residents throughout this process. Currently, in the first case, CLTB and CAFA are exploring different renovation options and initiating discussions with the condominium. In the second case, an architect has been hired, and the preliminary project is in progress.
Note: The commercial space on the ground floor and the second unit of the second case are empty. The ground floor is temporarily made available to a photographer artist for a few months. The project will also enable the second unit to be put up for sale again so that it can be renovated and occupied. Is the Upcycling Trust model an answer to vacant spaces? We'll be talking about it very soon!
CLTB mechanism: https://cltb.be/solutions-a-la-renovation-energetique/