Woluwe-Saint-Pierre: good documentation, no participatory budget

A massive electoral result

Woluwe-Saint-Pierre is a residential municipality of approximately 42,000 inhabitants. In the 2024 elections, the joint list Cerexhe (Les Engagés) - Bertrand (MR) achieved a massive result of 61.7% (+30 points), winning 24 of 35 seats. Competencies are split 50-50 between Engagés and MR.

Transparency: 4 out of 6 criteria

The budget, council minutes and agenda are published online, sessions are broadcast via livestream on YouTube, and the mandate registry is accessible via the transparency page. However, no Open Data portal and no participatory budget despite earlier commitments. Only advisory councils exist.

Absence of structured citizen participation

Woluwe-Saint-Pierre is one of the few Brussels municipalities without a participatory budget or citizen participation platform, despite commitments made in 2019.

Parking: transfer to Parking Brussels

From 1 March 2026, Woluwe-Saint-Pierre hands over parking management to Parking Brussels (regional agency). The free parking period drops from 30 to 15 minutes (exception: Place Dumon, 45 minutes). Scancar vehicles will gradually replace stewards for enforcement. Fines will be sent by post. The municipality expects a 30% increase in parking revenue.

Squat at 182 Avenue de Tervueren: tensions and legal proceedings (March-April 2026)

Since 25 February 2026, a vacant building at 182 Avenue de Tervueren (former Tirlemontoise) has been occupied by around 45 people — women from the DRC accompanied by around fifteen children aged 1 to 11. The owner, who has a housing permit in progress, filed an eviction request with the justice of the peace. The council session of 31 March 2026, attended by around a hundred residents and an interpellation signed by 130 people, saw tense exchanges: the Ecolo, DéFI and PS groups called for municipal mediation, while Mayor Benoît Cerexhe (Les Engagés) called the situation "inhumane" but declined mediation absent the owner's agreement; the Ecolo-Groen councillors walked out of the session. A hearing was held on 1 April 2026 before the justice of the peace, with the ruling reserved; the outcome of the proceedings could not be confirmed from available sources.

Sources: DH (1 April 2026); L'Avenir (27 March 2026); BX1, RTBF (April 2026).