Kortrijk first to build corona-proof event site

The city of Kortrijk has unveiled the design for a new corona-proof event site, the first in the country. The site, in the Weide neighbourhood in the east of the city, will host its first event on 26 September.

The 1,575 square-metre open-air site will be able to host 1,200 people. Tiles embedded in artificial turf indicate where bubbles of up to five people can stand. The site will be surrounded by about 30 shipping containers, which will serve as the stage and service areas as well as sales points for tickets, food and drinks.

The containers are mobile enough to be able to use the site for different kinds of events, according to the designer, Panama Events. “It could be an intimate jazz concert or a mussel feast thrown by a swim club,” Hans Staelens of Panama told VRT. “The containers can be kitted out in all kinds of ways for all kinds of events, and we can adapt them for every event.”

The city plans to offer the space for free to  organisations that want to use it, but, because of the open-air nature of the square, it will take noise levels into consideration.

Photo courtesy VRT