City of Sint-Niklaas

The pilot in Sint-Niklaas introduces five sharing stations at three sites to expand local access to shared goods and promote more sustainable consumption habits. 

The stations will be located across three public sites in Sint-Niklaas:

• Multi-sports area (SportBox) – Positioned in a well-attended public sports and play zone in the city centre, close to schools and the municipal sports hall. The area offers camera surveillance, is accessible 24/7, and is located outside the sports hall fence to ensure availability regardless of opening hours. Three sports sharing stations will be deployed here.
• Kringwinkel Den Azalee (KringBox) – Hosted at a popular second-hand store with a diverse customer base. The site provides generous opening hours, strong daily footfall, ample car and bicycle parking, and a natural alignment with the reuse ethos that fosters high user trust.
• Kroonmolenwijk Public Library (BibBox) – Situated in a socio-economic neighbourhood with a clear interest in sharing initiatives. The library functions as a daily hub with high foot traffic, long opening hours, parking facilities, a strong lending tradition, and regular public events that can support outreach.

The pilot will deploy three sport-focused stations and two multi-purpose stations, all free to use. The target audience includes library and second-hand store visitors, neighbourhood residents, school groups, families, and members of local sports and youth associations.

• SportBox will offer sports and outdoor equipment such as footballs, a basketball, fitness gear, beach ball sets, frisbees, spike ball, and kubb.
• KringBox will provide practical household and DIY tools, including a carpet cleaner, extendable ladder, wallpaper stripper, cordless drill and hammer drill set, extension reel, and a sewing machine.
• BibBox will offer a combination of hobby, tech, and household devices, including a handheld pressure washer, beamer, moisture meter, cordless drill, park games and more. 

Short-term goals

• Provide easy access to shared goods for citizens, reducing financial barriers and promoting social inclusion.
• Engage at least 350 citizens in co-creation activities and pilot use to ensure relevance and strong community adoption.
• Launch three fully operational sharing stations and gather usage data to support ongoing optimisation.

Long-term goals

• Raise awareness of unsustainable consumption patterns and demonstrate how sharing models can reduce waste, individual ownership demands, and resource use.
• Develop scalable, evidence-based solutions that advance Sint-Niklaas’ sustainability, sports participation, inclusion, well-being, and circularity ambitions, enabling long-term integration and potential replication in other cities.

This project is more than just lockers and apps — it’s about changing habits. By working across departments and with local partners, we’re building a model that combines social inclusion, circular economy, and innovation. It’s exciting to see how much potential this has for our city."