2023-11-15 14:18:00
Wandering the beautiful avenues around Fort-Jaco, in Uccle, is sure to discover architect-designed houses nestled in well-kept parks, as long as you are tall enough to see what is there behind the hedges, of course, like these castles located on the edge of the Bois de la Cambre and the Forest of Soignes.
It was also just before arriving at the Fougeraie building, in the Drève du Corporal, that we saw, during our rainy walk, one of the rare, if not the only, building seemingly abandoned in the neighborhood. , with wooden planks to block the windows. “To tell the truth, I don’t remember ever seeing this building occupied,” tells us Alain, a long-time resident and member of the Fond’Roy neighborhood committee.
He and his wife Pauline live in a discreet house at the end of an alley. “It was my grandfather who bought it in 1953,” he explains to us. Contrary to what people often say and read, it is not so common in the area for a property to remain in the family during an inheritance. You have to have the means to give the equivalent value to each of the other children. When my grandfather died, it was still possible to do it between my father and his brother. When I came to settle here, at the very beginning of the 1980s, my father was able to give something equivalent to my brother. But nowadays, the price of land is such that it would become really complicated.”
Remains as beautiful as seemingly abandoned, Drève du Corporal. ©Jean Bernard
In as many years, Alain and Pauline have seen the sociology of the neighborhood evolve. “We notice that it is the expatriates, and mainly the French, who have settled. We have a charming neighbor who, after buying his built land for 1.4 million euros, razed the house in order to build a circular home at the cutting edge of what is done in eco-construction, as original as it is low energy. . But if we like to evoke this character, it is also because he showed himself to be particularly human at the time of the migrant crisis. At that time, he was waiting for permits to demolish/rebuild the house he had just purchased. He came to ask each of his neighbors if they would have a problem if they made the house available to an association responsible for reception. He received an immediate, unanimous and enthusiastic response and, for a year, he was able to provide service, in complete discretion. The neighborhood police officer threatened to close the access because he had supposedly received a complaint from a neighbor but, unluckily for him, this intimidation did not work and he left the queue again. between the legs.”
This shows that the image of residents of beautiful neighborhoods living withdrawn into themselves is a caricature. They can be rebellious and supportive; but this takes us away from real estate, and from the evolution of the neighborhood over nearly fifty years!
Beautiful recent examples of architect-designed houses
“It’s a neighborhood where, even today, when we build new things, we try to be original, with architect-designed houses,” continues Alain. I cited this Frenchman and this circular house, but there is also a very beautiful example of a cubic house recently built on Avenue du Feuillage.”
A relocated downtown gourmet brand. ©Jean Bernard
A little selfishly, she admits, and because she is recently retired, Pauline specifies that the new mobility plan for the district, with a Chaussée de Waterloo limited to 30 km/h or new directions of traffic drève des Gendarmes , makes its own avenue more peaceful, with a drop in transit traffic. “Many motorists in a hurry avoided Chaussée de Waterloo and went via Avenue du Fort-Jaco to drop off their hockey-playing children at Racing or simply at school, Decroly and the Saint-Joseph Institute being located there. Also, this avenue of Fort-Jaco has become peaceful and satisfies me enormously during my walks or bike rides! Not sure I would say the same thing if I were still in the working world,” she smiles.
The Drève des Gendarmes, moreover, will see its surface completely redone in the years 2023 and 2024. With its old cobblestones and its bumpy appearance, it is becoming, it is true, less and less suitable for vehicles. It is also in this artery that we saw one of the rare renovation projects of an investment building, at 145-145A.
145-145A Drève des Gendarmes, refurbishment of an investment property. ©Jean Bernard
For Pauline and Alain, the evolution of the neighborhood over nearly half a century has also been marked in terms of businesses. “Almost all the small local stores have disappeared, apart from the Cordonnerie du Fort-Jaco, Drève des Renards. In recent years, we have mainly seen high-end brands from the center and upper part of the city relocating. But not always successfully, because we have seen a lot of turnover, especially when it comes to clothing stores. The caterers are doing quite well, with flavors from all over the world, which is a real pleasure. A neighborhood institution, the Vergels bakery and pastry shop, famous for its cream puffs, closed following the death of the boss in December 2020. Wittamer took over two months ago, a fine example of relocation and which well illustrates the evolution of Fort-Jaco. On the other hand, Jaco’s had reopened as a brasserie and had to already close its doors; the place is now a high-end restaurant, which will undoubtedly better withstand the high rents charged in the neighborhood. Before we had a chat with the cheese maker from La Petite Suisse, now we greet the valets…”
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