La Foresta Oud-Heverlee, Belgium 2025–2025

La Foresta is a mid-Twentieth Century neo-Romanesque former monastery of the Friars Minors Franciscans near Leuven. The renovation and extension of the building creates 117 apartments, and a range of public uses along with car parking below the cloister garden. The scheme respects the monastery’s most valuable heritage characteristics, prioritising the reuse of existing structure and fabric but for two new 6-storey CLT structures north and south of the nave. The design is rooted in an intrinsically sustainable, circular and regenerative approach

Image 1

  • 1_5_0384_View-1
    The project minimises its impact on the landscape and the ecosystem of the Meerdaalwoud. Working with the existing building’s footprint ensures that nature is not disturbed
  • 2_5_0384_20250821152643901
    The mature landscape of Heverleebos with its red American Oak, ground ivy, Solomon’s seal, celandine, arum, wild strawberry and lily of the valley, creates a unique setting for the new homes at La Foresta
  • 3_5_0384_Larger-site-plan
    Residents live around a cloister in an enclave carved out of the dense Heverleebos woodland surrounded by gardens
  • 4_5_0384_View-2
    Raising the roof unlocks an additional floor of homes. Our proposal raises the eave line but preserves the ridge, so the height and scale of the building remains unchanged
  • 5_5_0384_Six-big-ideas
    Six key ideas
  • 6_5_0384_UGF_plan
    Upper ground floor – the cloister is adopted as primary circulation to all homes. The design harnesses the potential of the original structural and spatial grid in planning the apartments
  • 7_5_0384_Typical_floor_plan
    Typical floor – the plans are efficient. Apartments within the new buildings north and south of the nave (west) share the same spatial character as those created in the original interiors (south and east)
  • 8_5_0384_Sectional-Perspective-EW
    The section offers a variety of dual and triple aspect homes - garden duplexes immersed in the landscape, and above, lateral apartments with long views
  • 9_5_0384_Housing-section
    The central courtyard garden is raised improving connections with the building; also providing discrete cost effective parking with just half a storey of excavation
  • 10_5_0384_Balcony-View-A
    New loggias with columns that adopt the shape of the arched windows provide private balconies and a parity between a life lived indoors and outside
  • 11_5_0384_Dwellings
    Working with the original grid, apartments are generous and well-proportioned with the spatial richness and grandeur of a house. Here are four different types
  • 12_5_0384_The-Church
    The church is repurposed as a communal space for public use along with a new library and restaurant within the former monastery kitchen

Technical

  • Appointment: 2025
  • Area: 18,630m2
  • Form of contract: Competition
  • Client: Ion
  • Collaborating Architect: Office Winhov
  • Landscape Architect: WITH20
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