You would be forgiven for missing the opening of De Grote Post, Ostend’s new culture centre. Though it’s been in the press for a couple of years, mostly with an air of relief that the building, which has stood empty since 1999, would finally be put to good use, it began staging events quietly, with invitation-only performances by Tom Lanoye and Wouter Deprez last December.

The plan foresees an increase in the port area of nearly 1,800 hectares. The Verrebroek dock on the left bank will be lengthened, and a new lock built on the Deurganck dock. The plan also leaves the door open for a new Saeftinghe dock at some point in the future. The land required for that dock has already led the town of Doel to be mostly abandoned; it is currently occupied by activists fighting the issue in the courts.