Technical sheet

Villa Geurts

The restoration and adaptive reuse of an eclectic park villa into a multi-family home

When in doubt, choose all of it; that may well have been the logic of magistrate Geurts. In designing his residence, he pursued the ideal modern villa. The resulting manor is best described as an eclectic villa with elements of the early cottage style, clearly influenced by Anglo-Norman architecture. We recognize this in Villa Geurts through its red roof tiles, projecting balconies, and oriels. And while the exterior expresses a lively formal language, the floor plan remains simple: spaces such as office, salon, dining room, kitchen, and utility rooms are arranged around a generous entrance hall.

Judges, priests, translators and pianists; Villa Geurts has known many lives. Built as a country estate for a magistrate, it was at times owned by the university and the diocese, then by the city of Lokeren. It briefly hosted classes in business and languages, then filled with the sounds of trumpet and piano as a music academy. Then: vacancy. Now, 115 years after the first stone was laid, a new chapter begins, noble in purpose for this noble house. We begin with historical and technical research.

Its layered room-by-room architecture, all wound around an imposing staircase, lends itself surprisingly well to its new future as a multi-family home. Several rooms can be logically grouped into apartments, without invasive changes. Where historical finishes remain, we restore; in other areas we renovate respectfully, a strategic use of means. Three major design interventions support this transformation.

Elegant terraces. The south facade may be less ornate in heritage terms, but it offers views over treetops drenched in afternoon sun. A slender steel structure allows one to “step out of the facade” on the upper floors. Special balconies, with a balustrade like a swan’s neck: a wide tabletop railing at seated height, with a lighter grip above. Clear sightlines, maximum usability, all within safety regulations.

A second face. The west facade is already remarkable: an eclectic peak with layered gables, shifting windows, and decorative elements. Historically the garden facade, its informality contrasts with the theatrical east-facing entrance. The new programme demands a second face here: an entrance that leads smoothly to both lift and stairs, without disturbing the architecture. A meandering path cuts through the landscaping and climbs gently, forming a bridge rather than a ramp, an architectural walk along a kaleidoscopic facade. The former winter garden, once an informal entry, is reinterpreted: a glass volume echoing the rhythm of the facade. Most striking is the reimagined dormer; a monk’s cowl of sorts, reaching forward to greet you, to shelter from rain, to house the doorbell and letterbox.

A new dormer. The logic of the floors below is extended into the expansive attic. The main staircase continues upward, paired with a new stair and the upward extension of the lift. For the first time in 115 years, life will unfold beneath a canopy of rafters and ridge beams. A small volume expansion ensures the minimum height needed. Between the peaks of the tiled roof nestles a small house where light shines in.

Werk - 196

616 001 geknipt bijgesneden — Geurts commissioned this park villa for his family; an impressive volume blending architectural styles into a coherent whole, set amongst trees.

AMS 1806 VTI OEV 20240705 Beeld C — Still surrounded by green. Still grand. But now big enough for more than one family.

AMS 1806 VTI OEV 20240705 Beeld A — A freestanding structure where each facade demands its own approach. Is there even such a thing as a front or back? Entrances will decide. The grand portico on the east becomes a covered terrace. Main entrances shift south and west, allowing better circulation and avoiding conflict with the ornate front salons.

0 01 kopie — A salon with four compass points. A theatrical room where not a single centimetre was left to chance.

Restoration and renovation

Villa Geurts presents a mixed picture of preservation, and so, a mixed heritage approach. Some zones have lost almost everything, allowing for renovation. Others remain richly intact and will be restored. Based on detailed documentation, including a spatial inventory, each approach is carefully mapped. On the ground floor, a number of impressive salons remain, calling for skilled restoration of parquet, marble mosaic, stained glass, fireplaces, stucco, murals, wainscoting and interior joinery. The facade and roof, with their distinctive presence, also retain much worth preserving: complex compositions of brick and natural stone, timber-framed overhangs, and even rare examples of sgraffito.

1 082 kopie — A stair above a stair. The attic was never used, despite its vast volume under the tiles. A new staircase continues the main flight, extending it logically upwards.

Circulation

Transforming the house into a multi-unit dwelling poses obvious circulation challenges. Originally built for one family, the villa features a sweeping stair in a grand foyer and a generous landing connecting all rooms. But there's no proper vertical access to the attic, and a second circulation route, historically for staff, still exists. All of this is now reinterpreted. After extensive study, a mirrored orientation proved most effective. The front salons, including the foyer, become part of a single apartment, minimizing intervention. The entrance shifts to what was once the back, though the facade there is just as elaborate. A new portico connects to the opposite side of the existing staircase and offers access to a lift, discreetly integrated into the only zone without heritage value. The attic is included through a new stair above the old one, a natural continuation. A new dormer ensures sufficient headroom, and becomes an expressive new piece in the southern facade.