1 July 2025
Pascal Smet and Ilyas Mouani, Brussels MPs for Vooruit.brussels, have urged acceleration of the open-air swimming pool project in Anderlecht in the Brussels Parliament. The extreme heat forecast for the coming days once again highlights the pressing shortage of swimming water in the Brussels-Capital Region. To address the urgency of the problem, Smet and Mouani have submitted a resolution on the matter..
The Brussels government is therefore urgently requesting that the case for an outdoor swimming pool on the Slachthuizensite in Anderlecht be expedited. The swimming pool project, which is part of the broader urban renewal project “Manufakture”, not only offers much-needed infrastructure for school swimming and recreation, but also provides a vision for an inclusive and vibrant neighbourhood in Kuregem.
1 swimming pool per 68,000 Brussels residents
Today, Brussels has only one public swimming pool per 68,000 inhabitants, significantly fewer than in Flanders (1/22,000) and Wallonia (1/29,000). The existing swimming pools are also structurally over-utilised, especially during school hours. At the same time, the demand for outdoor swimming is increasing, particularly in the summer months. With the disappearance of the temporary initiative FLOW at the Biestebroekdok, Brussels is currently the only European city with more than a million inhabitants without an outdoor swimming pool.
“With the summer holidays in prospect, young people in particular need swimming water., says Brussels MP Ilyas Mouani (Vooruit.brusselsIt is high time they can finally swim outdoors in their own city and don't have to travel to other cities. Since Océade closed in 2018, they have nowhere to go.
Time to push on
The rooftop swimming pool project on the Manufakture building was already prepared by the Urban Development Company (MSI), with the support of various government bodies, including the Brussels-Capital Region and the Flemish Community Commission. The feasibility study has been completed, the roof reinforcement finalised, and a subsidy promise of 3.24 million euros has been awarded. Everything is in place to take the next step.
“The plans are on the table. With this resolution, we want to authorise the Brussels government to start the tendering procedure., says Vooruit group leader in the Brussels Parliament Pascal Smet. It's time to push forward now. We must not let this opportunity slip through our fingers. The open-air swimming pool on the Slaughterhouse site isn't a luxury, but a necessity – for our schools, for the neighbourhood, and for the whole of Brussels.“