Wesselerbrink is a district that was built according to urban concepts dating from the sixties of the last century: greenery, space and a mix of high-rise and low-rise buildings. By the nineties, Wesselerbrink had become increasingly impoverished.

The Kombi Project was set up in response to deterioration in the district of Wesselerbrink in general, and in three specific Brinks (a kind of court or village square: the Pollenbrink, the Piksenbrink and the Sibculobrink) in particular. The involvement of the residents with respect to the Brinks was very limited until recently. There is hardly any social cohesion and there is a certain level of tension between certain immigrant groups, without this resulting in any problems. Almost half of the residents of the Brinks are immigrants, while the city average is sixteen percent.

Objectives of the project:

Actions include consulting with the community, revamping play areas and placing flower troughs, which are partly maintained by the residents. In places, the management has been taken over by the residents. This was unthinkable a few before.

In the project, results were achieved in the spatial-physical mainstay, where work was done on problems that can be grouped under the social mainstay (social cohesion, social tension). For example, certain residents of the three Brinks have acquired a special position in the work processes of the Social Services. The extent of disturbances appeared to decline and the image of the district appeared to improve when compared with a few years ago. In any case, the residents themselves noticed a clear difference.

In 1998, the project received a working budget of 27,225 euros. This budget makes quickly responding to initiatives possible.

Foundation Wijkwelzijn Zuid, tel. +31 53 4761672

01/11/1998

case

Urban Policy > Social inclusion & integration > Community development

Citizens' participation