PDPO

Liveable heritage in the Kempen landscape: in search of new uses, partners and economic support (2013)

Today Kempens Landschap has charge of a number of large heritage projects: country house estates, military heritage sites, monasteries and abbeys, mill sites, farms, etc. Large sites like these are an important part of our environment. However, because of their size and complexity, the costs entailed are particularly hefty. Hence the need to keep a close eye on the cost-effectiveness of such projects.

So as part of this PDPO (Vlaams Programmadocument voor Plattelandsontwikkeling) programme, Kempens Landschap is looking to launch a pilot project with a view to establishing a wide network of partners, both with regard to re-use and financing, and to deploy this network for specific projects. We drew on our experience to build a business model that can be applied generally to country estates in the region so as to fill an important niche within the Province of Antwerp and to meet the growing demand from municipalities for the input of expertise. 

As part of the PDPO project, broad thought was given for pretty well the first time to the feasibility of various forms of alternative financing in our province, by way of cooperation between the private and government sectors and as a form of win-win alliance.

Winter Garden Revisited (WIRE) (2013)

The Ursuline Institute was opened to the general public as part of the plan to develop tourism in the grounds of the school and convent. Under the guidance of Kempens Landschap, the vzw Wintertuin submitted an application for the provision of better facilities for individuals from home and abroad wishing to visit the institute.  The project ran for one year and the first phase included a vision developed to test the tourist potential against the working of the vzw Wintertuin and the scope of the site. In the second phase money was invested in reception facilities at the winter garden (desk, cloakroom, etc.) and in projection equipment.