At the request of the City of Ghent, AEArchitecten designed a series of dwellings along a busy thoroughfare in the north of the city, tailored to a specific group of users: the long-term homeless. This project is the first concrete manifestation of a new housing policy aimed at eliminating homelessness. Using a simple palette of materials and colours, the firm has designed a project that references various types of housing. The result is a building that, while exposed to the gaze of passers-by, serves as a landmark and refuge for its users.

These dwellings, called “Robuuste Woningen”, are an example of Housing First, a principle that aims to provide housing for homeless people as it facilitates their reintegration into society. The dwellings are intended for people in problematic housing situations, i.e. those who no longer have access to conventional housing, and are based on the Danish skæve huse — more specifically, skæve huse til skæve eksistenser (literally, different houses for different lifestyles). This type of housing consists of around ten compact dwellings supervised by a support worker, who often also lives in one of the units. Skæve huse are generally detached houses with four walls. This gives residents an address in a place that is clearly their own. By reducing contact between people, this type of housing also avoids conflicts.