From Space to Place
Why CO-HO is becoming a Regenerative Place Maker? And why ALMA Wiener is only the beginning?
Cities don’t necessarily need more buildings.
They need more places.
Places where we stop instead of simply passing through.
Places where strangers become neighbours.
Places where coffee, food, culture, nature and everyday life can coexist.
Places that give us a reason to stay.
This simple conviction is shaping the next chapter of CO-HO.
We started with design, modular architecture and a belief that cities could make better use of what they already have.
Today, our ambition goes further.
CO-HO is becoming a regenerative design studio creating places where infrastructure meets humanity.
And this September, that vision becomes tangible with the opening of our first ALMA Community Bar at Place A.Payfa-Fosseprez, in Watermael-Boitsfort.
From designing spaces to regenerating places
For decades, urban development has largely been driven by efficiency.
We became very good at moving people, building infrastructure and optimising square metres.
But somewhere along the way, we often forgot something fundamental:
How a place makes people feel.
A railway station can move thousands of people every day without becoming a destination.
A public square can be perfectly designed and remain almost empty.
A neighbourhood can be dense, connected and functional while offering surprisingly few opportunities for people to actually meet.
CO-HO wants to work in that space between infrastructure and human experience.
Rather than asking only “What should we build here?”, we prefer to ask:
“What could happen here?”
Could an unused corner become a neighbourhood coffee bar?
Could a transit hub become a place to meet?
Could an overlooked square host food, culture, wellness or community activities?
Could temporary architecture help us test new uses before committing to permanent construction?
And, most importantly:
Could we build less, reuse more and create more value with what already exists?
That is what regeneration means to us.
CO is our engine. Community is our compass.
The CO in CO-HO has always mattered.
CO means Collective Intelligence.
We believe the most interesting places are rarely created by one organisation alone.
CO means Co-creation.
We work with municipalities, architects, designers, manufacturers, local entrepreneurs, cultural players, operators and communities.
CO means Connection.
Because ultimately, the success of a place is not measured only in square metres or architectural awards.
It is measured by what happens between people.
Do they stay?
Do they meet?
Do they come back?
Do they feel that somehow, this place also belongs to them?
This is why we no longer see CO-HO simply as a design studio.
We see it as an ecosystem capable of imagining, designing, assembling and activating places.
ALMA = regenerating everyday city life
The first expression of this vision is ALMA: Act Local. Move Around.
ALMA explores a simple question:
How can small-scale interventions create a big impact on neighbourhood life?
Instead of waiting years for major redevelopment projects, we use modular, reversible and circular infrastructure to activate places quickly.
Coffee & food micro-hubs.
Community spaces.
Urban villages.
Wellness and contrast-therapy hubs.
Railway-station activations.
Temporary installations.
New uses for overlooked public spaces.
The infrastructure is important.
But it is never the final product.
The community is.
And our first ALMA is about to come to life.
Meet ALMA Wiener
End September 2026, we will open our first ALMA Community Bar on Place A.Payfa-Fosseprez in Watermael-Boitsfort, Brussels (BE).
Not exactly a coffee shop.
Not exactly a bar.
Not exactly a restaurant.
And deliberately so.
ALMA is a place to belong.
A small neighbourhood destination where you can grab a great coffee, have something to eat, meet a friend, sit outside, discover a local collaboration, join an event or simply spend some time without necessarily having planned to.
Built around our modular infrastructure, ALMA Wiener will temporarily activate part of the square through a lightweight, reversible approach.
Instead of imposing a permanent programme on the neighbourhood, we want the place to evolve with it.
F&B partners.
Local makers.
Coffee.
Drinks.
Community tables.
Small events.
Unexpected collaborations.
Different moments of the day should create different reasons to come.
Because ALMA isn't designed around a single transaction.
It is designed around life happening around it.
Why Wiener District?
The Wiener District represents exactly the kind of urban environment we find fascinating.
It already has infrastructure.
It already has movement.
It already has people.
It already has a community.
Our job isn't to reinvent it.
It is to add another layer of life to it.
That distinction is important.
Regenerative urbanism should not necessarily mean spectacular architecture or enormous redevelopment programmes.
Sometimes, regeneration can begin with twenty square metres, a terrace, some trees, a table, good coffee or beer and a reason for people to stop by.
ALMA Wiener will therefore also be an experiment.
A real-life laboratory for understanding how small, modular interventions can contribute to stronger neighbourhoods and more vibrant public spaces.
We will learn.
Adapt.
Change things.
Invite others in.
And use what we learn to imagine the next ALMA.
Building with what already exists
Regeneration also requires us to reconsider the way we build.
The construction industry has traditionally followed a linear model:
extract → build → use → demolish.
We believe the future should look very different with a high level of flexibility and by promoting the circular design & build model.
Our approach prioritises existing resources, reusable components, modular systems and reversible construction. Thanks to valuable key partners (Coliseum, Gramitherm, Rotor DC, Batiterre, BC Materials, Duplex, Regglo, Relieve…)
We call it simply:
Build with what exists first.
Our structures are conceived as adaptable pieces of infrastructure rather than permanent objects tied forever to one location or one function.
A module can move.
A façade can change.
Materials can be reused.
Functions can evolve.
A coffee hub today might become something entirely different tomorrow.
This ability to adapt matters enormously in cities that themselves never stop changing.
And beyond the city: Revivio
There is another side to the CO-HO story.
If ALMA explores how we reconnect people with communities, Revivio explores how we reconnect people with nature and themselves.
Through modular lodges, nature retreats, wellness experiences and regenerative hospitality, Revivio applies many of the same principles in radically different environments.
Less noise.
Less friction.
More nature.
More attention.
More time.
We believe hospitality is not simply about providing accommodation.
It is the art of care.
The way architecture meets a landscape.
The way someone moves through a space.
The warmth of materials.
The silence of a room.
The presence or deliberate absence of technology.
Hospitality should feel effortless without being anonymous.
Thoughtful without being overwhelming.
Premium without becoming disconnected from its environment.
Our ambition isn't simply to create places where people sleep.
It is to create places where time feels different.
One vision. Two ecosystems.
This is where the new CO-HO takes shape.
CO-HO is the strategic and creative engine.
ALMA reconnects people with their communities.
Revivio reconnects people with nature.
Different environments. Different experiences.
But the same fundamental belief:
spaces are never neutral.
They can isolate us or connect us.
They can consume resources or regenerate them.
They can accelerate our lives or give us permission to slow down.
They can simply occupy space —
or they can create meaning.
We choose the latter.
The first chapter starts at Wiener
ALMA Wiener will be small.
And that's precisely the point.
Because changing cities doesn't always start with another masterplan.
Sometimes it starts with reclaiming a few square metres and asking a very simple question:
What if this could become a place where people actually want to be?
This September, we'll find out.
Welcome to ALMA Wiener.
Coffee. Food. Culture. Community.
A place to belong.
More info here: http://almacoffee.be/
