2023-08-16 15:33:00
”At times, we no longer know how to hear each other speak on the terrace. We have already felt the walls shake. In one year, the situation has deteriorated sharply.” From their terrace, Michel and Anne-Marie have a breathtaking view of the Parc du Cinquantenaire. A park they have enjoyed and frequented for decades. But for several months, growing “noise nuisances” have disturbed their peace of mind. The people of Etterbeek immediately specify: “Scouts, children, families, that poses no problem. The same goes for sports fields. Everything is fine. The problem comes from the amplified music.”
On the one hand, local residents are seeing an increase in major events with a podium and sound system, such as the “Solomun Open Air”, music festivals and, more recently, the July 21 festivities. “The park is not a concert hall. There are stadiums for that”, laments Anne-Marie.
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But besides these occasional events, it is the daily noise of “wild activities” that irritates the most. “Almost every night there are dance lessons with amplified music, sometimes until 1am. But also djembe lessons, gymnastics and more.”
Faced with the din, “because the sound is rising”, calls to the police are increasing. “The police and the dispatching understand and have a benevolent attitude.” But it is clear that the local police find themselves helpless during the interventions. “It all starts once more right following.” Hence the appeal to politics launched by the couple, who asks the public authorities to further regulate the park and hopes to see a regulation like that adopted by Olivier Maingain (Défi) at Georges Henri Park prohibiting under penalty of fine amplified music.
Institutional table tennis
In their requests, local residents see the ball thrown from one level of power to another. It must be said that the Parc du Cinquantenaire is a textbook case of Belgian institutional complexity. Broadly speaking: the small part on the Mérode side is on the territory of Etterbeek and the large one from the stairs on Brussels-City, but the park is managed by Brussels Environment (regional), with the exception of the esplanade, buildings and arcades which depend on the Régie des Bâtiments (federal).
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At Brussels Environment, we assure that the number of events authorized on the site is “relatively stable” and that “not all requests are accepted”. “However this year, there was also the electronic music festival and the July 21 festivities, as in 2022.”
The smallest activities in the park are assessed by the regional administration according to their scale. In short, no authorization required if no privatization of space and inconvenience for other users. For “wild activities” on the esplanade between the museums, such as dance classes, the relay is given to the Régie des Bâtiments… which sends it back to Brussels Environment.
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Brussels-City kicks in, Etterbeek wants to tighten the screw
As for the municipalities concerned, which hold a strike force via the granting of authorizations and potential orders as has already been done in Georges Henri Park? Fundamentally different position on either side of the stairs leading to the esplanade. When contacted, the cabinet of the Brussels mayor Philippe Close (PS) refers the responsibility to Brussels Environment. What his Etterbeek counterpart Vincent De Wolf (MR) does not do.
”There is a pressure because it is a marvelous site. The problem comes from accumulation. But the situation is not simple”, comments the liberal in view of the division of the place. “The events are organized in the City of Brussels but the inconveniences come in Etterbeek.”
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We learn that recent consultations have made it possible to put an end to followingworks taking place in the park and the Etterbeek mayor announces that he wants to tighten the screw even further. But not unilaterally. “Putting fines on our side doesn’t make sense. I will contact Philippe Close to try to work out a common regulation.”
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