The City of Beringen has worked hard in recent years to create a new "piece of town" for Beringen. The Town Hall, the renovated library, the underground parking lot, and the new courtyard will be officially opened on October 8. The renewed site will create a vibrant city center that symbolizes the growth of the city of Beringen.
The new Town Hall offers benefits, both to residents and employees. "By centralizing our services, we ensure an even better service and guarantee easy accessibility. Due to the corona crisis and the obligation to work from home, our organization had to adapt quickly. The New World of Work, with its focus on working independent of time and place, was introduced and everyone had to get on the digital express train," says Mayor Thomas Vints, who is also pleased that the new building and organization support and encourage this new way of working.
Accordingly, the work spaces are geared to the activities that our employees need to perform on a given workday. Think of a physical meeting in a conference room, file work in a quiet work zone or a creative brainstorming session in a brainstorming room, you name it. Each employee chooses the space according to the tasks and assignments they need to perform that day. The employees do not have a fixed workplace and the clean desk principle is used.
The service and support services of the town and OCMW Beringen were centralized at this location so that the citizen always goes to one place if he needs to call on the town administration. The supporting services of the town and OCMW have already been integrated for a few years, but the new town hall is the cherry on the cake of the integration of two organizations because all employees are now gathered in one location.
After some preparatory work, we started the actual construction of the new City Hall in early 2020. The master plan for the total site and the City Hall itself were designed by UAU Collectiv and together with Jaspers-Eyers architects further brought to a construction-ready design. The contractors TM Willemen Construct - Democo were responsible for the construction of the new city hall. The workplace layout and loose furniture were designed and advised by DBV architects. Furthermore, Deholi was responsible for the customized furniture, AEW for the electrical installation & lighting and AEW Security for the security.
The façade and the wing of the old college building were kept in honour and the college site was given a new public function with this city hall. The new building with the beautiful glass facade was built against it so that old and new are connected. The former college chapel was converted into a wedding hall and council chamber and is an architectural gem. Art was also integrated into the entire building through the application of street art by Océane Corneille and Kurt Bosmans of the Streetart Festival.
The parties involved emphasize the smooth and efficient cooperation with the town of Beringen: "The corona crisis hit hard. Our contractor combination had to change gears quickly in order to work Coronaproof and ensure that the official opening was not compromised. Thanks to constructive consultation and transparent communication, the Town Hall was delivered even earlier than expected. A few months after this delivery, we can now all enjoy the beautiful final result", says Project Director Wim Briels of TM Willemen Construct - Democo.
In the meantime, the first phase of the environmental construction around the city hall and library has also been completed. The new public inner court is gradually taking shape and in the autumn of 2022 it will be possible to admire it in all its glory after completion of the second phase of the environmental construction around the private apartment buildings. The latter buildings will then also be completed together with the Brasserie Grand Café.
These 3 apartment buildings, known as Project M, will provide 95 residential units in a unique central location. This will also bring extra life to Beringen center.
