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Brussels gets new church for first time in 35 years
A new church is to be built on the van Meyel square in the Brussels commune of Etterbeek.
The Brussels-Capital Region has awarded a building permit to the church wardens who own the plot of land where the church is to be built.
A neo-gothic church used to exist in that exact same place, but it was demolished in 1993 as it was in danger of collapsing.
Soon after the Saint-Gertrude church was demolished, a group of locals started raising funds to rebuild the church.
“These people have been waiting for the new church for 27 years,” a spokesperson for the Saint-Gertrude church parish told Bruzz. “The services have been taking place in a garage all this time,” he said, adding that each service tends to draw around 120 people.
Many locals, however, are opposed to the plans for the new church. It’s been gone for too long, they say.
“The square has become a community space,” said Mathieu Noël. “It has become a vibrant spot, one that is neutral and that isn’t Catholic.”
The last time a new church was built in Brussels was in 1985.
Photo: Google Maps
Written by Linda A. Thompson
Comments
More development in a commune that has already built or is going to build on green spaces, especially for only (currently) 120 people is madness. At the same time stating that the square is "vibrant" is rather exaggerating matters too. It's a nice focal point on the rare occasions that events take place (summer) or for brocantes. At night it's dark and occupied by youths / men sitting on the benches smoking and drinking and not particularly inviting. Walking/playing on the grass is risky due to the usual poor attitude of local dog owners, whilst the other half of the square is inexplicably covered in gravel. So much more could be done to make it a really pleasant green space, rather than dumping yet another building on it.