GARE MARITIME

The analysis of the conversion of the Gare Maritime has many aspects. To re-use old buildings requires respect for the history which they represent. It is essential to retain the atmosphere while nowadays, sustainability has become an integral part of the new architecture. Heritage conversions require extraordinary skills of the architects and engineers; even more implementing sustainability in heritage conversions is a very demanding task. As the Gare Maritime is part of a more significant conversion, this will be discussed the process in the following text. This starts with the history of the site, and the building itself, followed by the consequences of implementing sustainability in all of its aspects, ecologic, economic, and social. The construction in this intervention is fascinating; several unique details had to be discussed, both internally and with the building committee, before they could be implemented.

The origin of the name of the project area is quite an interesting one. Already back in the 16th century, the postal service was rather important. A key player was a German family, the Princely House of Thurn and Taxis. They originate from Italy as the Tasso family, who around 1290 the Company of Couriers linked Milan with Venice and Rome. They rose to the Chief Master of Postal Services at Innsbruck, moved to Brussels, and became important players in the postal system. In 1624 they became Counts and adopted the German form of their French name de La Tour et Taxis, Thurn und Taxis 1 (1). Today, the family is one of the richest in Germany and produces beer named Thurn und Taxis. The family-owned the land the Gare Maritime later was built on. They used it for their horses used to run the postal service.

To understand the economic importance of the Thurn and Taxis lot, we need to travel back in history. The plot was strategically positioned near the river, as we will see later adjacent to the canals.

Already in the 1550’s to 1560’s the Willebroek Canal, formely known as Brussels-Rupel canal as it joins the Rupel river, was built. The channel connected Brussel to the Scheldt River and led further down the river to the North Sea. In 1830 the Coal Canal even further supported the economy (2). During the 19th century, Europe experienced enormous economic and industrial growth. Brussels decided to replace their harbor with a new one, situated outside the city walls. As the most suited location, the terrain of the family Thurn und Taxis was chosen. It was an area of wetlands, as mentioned, used for the horses of the postal service. The site was purchased by the Belgium State.

The Belgium railway engineer Frederic Bruneel (1855-1942) became in the 1890’s head of the department responsible for the upcoming railway stations in Brussel. Bruneel was also the designer behind Gare Maritime (1902), a freight transport station located on this site, alongside the Brussel channel. It became one of the largest railway stations in Europe (3). As a matter of fact, Belgium was the second country in Europe to open a railway (4).

Besides the train station, docks and warehousing, as well as customs offices, were realized. The architects who helped with this impressive building were Erenst van Humbeeck, Constant Bosmans, and Henri Vandeveld. They managed to finish the project in record time; it was operational in 1907, shortly after it was transferred to The Nameless Company Sea Channel and Harbor Design.

In the following blooming economic times, Brussels Tour et Taxis became the world’s largest transport hub for goods by rails and on water. Gare Maritime was used as a goods station for the international trade, harboring shipping quays, depots custom offices as well as a large amount of train tracks.

Around 1950 the road transport became very competitive and left Thurn and Taxis, unfortunately, was vacant for some time. Several plans were developed for the different buildings. The site was purchased by an investment group in 2001, who initiated the renovation of amongst other the Royal Warehouse. These were done by Archi 2000. Other buildings were either torn down or restored in 2010 (5).

Almost every country has developed a set of rules to ensure a certain level of build quality, as well as a level of comfort. Generally speaking, these sets are known as the building code. In the case of adaptive re-use several aspects of the old building need to be conserved. This usually results in a conflicting situation when the modern building code is applied. This legislation is in need of an adaptation to allow the preserve the old building while integrating it into modern society.

Out of this perspective, several countries have started to evaluate the situation. Being a student in Spain, I will illustrate the steps usually taken by presenting the situation in Spain.

First and foremost, it has to be determined what defines heritage. Clear and uniform criteria need to be in place. Although there are differences throughout countries, most of them identified the three main categories; monuments, historical ensembles, and sites (6), with values like tradition, history, architecture, archaeology, technology, and society. Ideally, these would therefore exist at a national level. In Spain, the protection of these historical assets exists at both national and regional levels. At a national level, there are several regulations (7) (8) (9) (10) in place. At a regional level, each region has its own set of rules (11) (12). There is some concern about the lack of national standards, forcing the regional institutions to design their own specific set of criteria and rules, including the categorization.

The step following the definition has to be inspection and diagnosis to make up the list with candidates. As soon as these are known, they have to be processed, meaning inventory and cataloging, again according to uniform standards to identify the characteristics and patrimonial value. Based upon this, one can decide the level of protection and the levels of intervention, and how they define the need for flexibility.

The scale of an intervention of a monument, historical site, or landscape is the result of an in-depth analysis of the data that are produced by the aforementioned inventory and cataloging process. Just to clarify, this is a combination of identification (type of building, particular elements, occupations, and alike) and, not less important, the living conditions of the residents. The last factor is often either neglected or not appreciated enough. Finally, the degrees of intervention is decided.

At this point, the conflict between the current building code set and the need for preservation of the heritage surfaces. In Spain, this has led to the adaptation of the CTE. Two criteria are defined by the building code, proportionality, and flexibility. Proportionality means the intervention should stay within reason. Factors to consider are repair, renovation, change of use and/or extension. Flexibility has been discussed before. It represents the necessity to adapt modern building code to be able to preserve particular characteristics of the constructions, the dimension as well as context defining the patrimonial value.

The intervention of the Gare Maritime is, however situated in Belgium, more specifically Flanders, where the situation is somewhat different. The country has a prohibitive complex governmental structure, with a lack of policy or responsibility for heritage. There is an emerging realization that heritage needs attention and regulation.

Central there is the Department for Culture, Youth, and Media (13). They are supported by several advisory councils (14) (15). These administer a database and deliver specific guidance on re-use. On a lower level, a provincial immovable heritage service (16) inspects the immovable heritage of private parties. They also provide advice in the planning phase. Then there is the Immovable Heritage Agency (17) which published a vision concerning heritage in Flanders, including not only the patrimonial and technical aspects but also the social implications. The municipalities work together through an Inter-municipal Immovable Heritage Agency (18) and the Flemish immovable heritage service (19). Finally, HERITA offers advice and support while raising public awareness.

The intervention is executed by Extensa. When they acquired the Tour & Taxis site, the building was ready for tear-down. Hundreds of plans with detailed renditions of the construction details in the archives of the Belgium Railroad Company (20), were studied meticulously. In 2016 an extensive analysis was published, including a SWOT analysis (21)

But we need to step back in time a little. In 1993 the Thurn & Taxis Distributary and Tax Centre closed its doors permanently. It was the start of a long fight over the property and its destination. The city wrote a plan which did not respect the surrounding neighborhood. One should realize that the function was transport and distribution, both by train and ship, and therefore closely located to the docks. As a result, the surrounding area is populated by the working force required to operate all this. It is one of Brussels most densely populated areas, with more than 17.000 inhabitants per square km. Above all, it is a poor and young population, 50% younger than 30 years of age with an average income 20% less than average and 48% unemployment. They require child support, schools, and collective public amenities. As always, these areas of the lower class are poorly equipped; 15% have no running water or toilet.

As mentioned before, sustainability is not only about energy savings; the social part is as important.

The above-mentioned circumstances require a social improvement. The demise of the Thurn & Taxis activity offered an opportunity to build social housing, schools, and other educational offerings.

The area is known for its traffic jam. A new development should therefore include a plan, and not in the least the necessary funding, to substantially improve this compromised traffic situation.

Another point of criticism is the lack of green in the area. Although several small green parks have been created, like “Park L28”, “Parkfarm” and “Opzichter speelplein”, these represent no substantial increase in public green space. Furthermore, the Thurn & Taxis area is privately owned, and a green area in it can, as such at best, be called a garden open for the public. In the latest plans, the designated green area is no longer mentioned; it is now called a multifunctional space…

The earliest plans were heavily criticized by several actors, amongst which BRAL (22) IBE (23), Arau (24), and La Fonderie (25). They managed to get the lot recognized as a cultural heritage site by the World Monument Fund (26) (27). Although their legal action resulted in a loss, the plans were dropped.

The latest zoning plan for the area dates from 2016-2017 (28). and shows much improvement from the early days. However, they were made in cooperation with the private developers. A big part of the initial concerns is still valid.

There was written an extensive report (29) by Inge Bertels and Jan de Moffarts, which formed the foundation on which the decision was made to restore the original structure and composition. Actually, the building has no statutory protection, but the Royal Commission of Monuments and Landscape (30) (now VCOE) was involved in an advisory role.

Of course, contemporary ventilation had to be integrated, which formed a challenge and resulted in creative solutions, in which the new elements were used as a part of and in style with the old construction. New bricks were constructed in old shapes to replace the old destroyed ones, and the axes of the building were redesigned to make a better fit on site.

Another excellent example of the flexibility of the building code is the way fire safety was resolved. According to the Belgian fire safety laws, evacuation stairs have to be enclosed to shield them from heat and smoke. This would introduce a distracting modern element. In cooperation with the University of Liège a model was built to show the possibility of evacuating 15.000 people through open stairs in a safe way by installing vents and a smoke extraction system. It resulted in permission to deviate from the existing building code.

The Gare Maritime is not limited to the restoration and preservation of the patrimonial built. It has been reassigned to a new function and is a model of sustainability (31) and circular construction. Due to its construction, the building enjoys a Mediterranean climate all year round. In several commentaries, it has been mentioned that its inspiration is taken from the Ramblas in Barcelona and that it succeeds in creating the Barcelona experience.

As a final remark, this adaptive re-use project concerns more than just the old railway station. The surroundings have to be modified, and the function in the city is redefined. Therefore it would be just to categorize is also under urbanization. As I mentioned in another essay of mine, most of the time, the reconversion of such brown spots contributes strongly to the revitalization of the local environment, both cultural, leisure, and commercial. It, however, does not represent a quick turnover and is not easily copied from one site to another. Important things to consider are the history and identity of the locality.

The idea of sustainability started decades ago, but I became more real after Gro Harlem Brundtland delivered the final report “Our Common Future” (32). It still took many years for the world to embrace the concept; nowadays, it is a well-known aspect in the architectural world. Just to clarify, according to this report, sustainability consists of three pillars. First, there is the ecological dimension. The environmental systems of the earth should be kept in balance, meaning the natural resources should be used at a rate/way that gives them the chance to replenish themselves. Second, comes the economic dimension. Societies across the globe all have access to the necessary resources according to their needs, and they are able to keep their economies up and running. Lastly, there is the social dimension. This means that human rights are secured and attainable to everybody.

Why should we concern ourselves with this environmentally conscious building? This is discussed in the UN Environment, Global Status Report 2017 “Buildings and construction account for more than 35% of global final energy use and nearly 40% of energy-related CO2 emissions.” The World Commission on Environment and Development describes well what it is all about: “the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.

In architecture, the first dimension, the ecological, is most prominent, but the second and third should not be forgotten. To illustrate this think of the following.

The environmental benefits are easy to realize, like conservation and restoration of natural resources, a reduction in energy consumption and waste, protection of ecosystems and environmental biodiversity, and improvement of air and water quality.

The economic consequences are obviously a reduction in long-term costs and dependence on traditional energy sources, but also improvement in productivity of inhabitants, an upgrade asset & property values, and competitive advantage.

The social upsides are the improvement of the living conditions, health, and comfort of inhabitants, better air and water quality, and a reduction of demand on local utility infrastructure.

It is not an easy task to implement sustainability in a project. It requires the involvement of a consultant Patient that was sent to the emergency room in the early RIBA stages (33). The biggest obstacle in sustainability is funding.

Sustainability was one of the focus points of the rehabilitation of Gare Maritime. The owning company Extensa funded the rebuild, which made it possible to really implement sustainability. The project was planned meticulously with the help of several outside companies for the different aspects that needed to be addressed.

There are some aspects to consider, starting with the site. In this case, the site is a pre-existing industrial area in Brussels, Tour & Taxis, containing several heritage buildings. Amongst them is the old freight train station. Being adaptive re-use eliminates the impact of creating a new site. Not only is there no need to clear a piece of land, but the infrastructure is readily available. The building is close to public transport (the Yser metro is an eight-minute walk, while a tram stop on the Rue Picard is forthcoming.

Secondly, the construction needs to have as little impact as possible. In the intervention on the Gare Maritime, this was achieved by using laminated timber instead of concrete. As a matter of fact, it is Europe’s largest timber project, with about 10.000 cubic meters of carbon dioxide-absorbing material, saving several tons of dioxide emissions. Concrete is a big environmental polluter, emitting 8% 8% of the global total of carbon dioxide (34) (35). The production process of clinker, the binder, and the heating of the kilns stand for 90% of the emission. The world's floor area is increasing at an enormous rate. Architects should look for alternative materials. The choice of wood had a second advantage; the construction time was considerably shorter due to pre-fab and dry construction. It was no easy task to build this big with laminated timber; both glued and cross-laminated versions were used (36). The Wood construction was provided by Zueblin Timber Company, which is sustainable aware, showing in their use of wood from PEFC-certified (37) forests and their HOLZ VON HIER (38) certification. For the finish, FSC certificated oak was used, a qualification of sustainably managed forests.

Once the building is finished, it needs to be energy neutral. The constructors did an amazing job. They started by using the existing train shed as a thermal encasement and adding insulation. The roof was filled with 17.000 square meters of solar panels. The glazing was replaced with 1.633 square meters of ultra-modern sensor-controlled dimmable Halio electrochromic glazing panels. These protect the structure from heating up like a greenhouse on sunny days. The heating is provided by 12 geothermal wells, which. Assisted by an adiabatic passive cooling system that uses evaporated rainwater to cool the air drawn, it has the power to warm the space to acceptable temperatures. It functions in cooperation with intelligently controlled opening parts in the facade and roof surfaces. The office's spaces are cooled with air-conditioners connected to the heat pumps. The whole actually produces more renewable energy than it consumes.

The above-mentioned rainwater not only cools but also irrigates the over 3.000 square meters of gardens and flushes the toilets (39).

In the way the different solutions are used, they provide for a healthy environment for the users. It is the perfect example of flexibility and well-being. There will be stores, offices, and restaurants, as well as a central open space for events and promotions. Although it is a big structure, due to the scale of the pavilions and the open balconies, it breathes a friendly atmosphere.

Although not very likely, the construction is done with a mechanical connection to allow “easy” dismantling and secure circularity.

All these efforts were validated through the rigorous BREEAM (40) methodology and was awarded the ARC20 Architecture Award (41). The concept of the intervention fits nicely in the New European Bauhaus sustainable architecture initiative (42).

Interestingly the project started without architects, but soon common sense prevailed and the project was commissioned to Neutelings Riedijk Architects. Their firm was founded in 1987 by Willem Jan Neutelings and Michiel Riedijk. Over the past decades, Neutelings Riedijk Architects has established itself internationally by concentrating on designing and realizing multifaceted projects for public, commercial and cultural constructions.

Michiel Riedijk graduated from his studies in architecture at the Technical University Delft in 1989. He accepted a full professorship in 2007 as chair of Public Building and Architectural Compositions at the faculty of Architecture at the Technical University Delft. In this capacity, he frequently lectures at universities, conferences, and cultural institutions over the world. He was a teacher at the Technical University of Eindhoven, the Academies of Architecture in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Maastricht, and the Berlage Institute in Rotterdam. In 2002, he was appointed as a guest professor at the RWTH Aachen. Michiel Riedijk is an international fellow of the RIBA.

Willem Jan Neutelings also studied in Delft. He graduated in 1986. he received the Rotterdam-Maaskant Prize for Young Architects.

As his partner, Neutelings often lectures at international universities, congresses, and at cultural institutions. He was a lecturer at the Academy of Construction and the Berlage Institution in Rotterdam. In 1999 he was a guest lecturer at Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

Neutelings Riedijk portfolio distinguishes by figurative style and physicality of form without losing touch with reality, both in programming and context. The two architects are convinced that modern ornamentation gives buildings a powerful identity, which in turn results in a local connection. In 2018 Neutelings Riedijk Architects presented their publication ‘Ornament & Identity’, complex writing presenting the answers of their quest for expression and identity, by thoroughly examining nearly fifty of their own projects.

Most of the firm’s projects have been commissioned through international competitions. The firm’s work has an appraisal for several of their projects, like the Museum aan de Stroom and the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision. They received the BNA-Kubus/Biennial Prize for their entire oeuvre from the Dutch Architects Union in 2010.

Their work is not only locally known; through numerous publications in the international press, their name is worldwide recognized. Mentionable awards are the Gouden Pyramide, the Belgian Building Award, and the Rotterdam Maaskant Prize, and they have been shortlisted for the Mies van der Rohe Award. They have been selected for exhibitions in New York, Los Angeles, Paris, Venice, São Paulo, Beijing, Barcelona, Moscow, and Prague.

Of course, the two rely on a team of talented, highly educated, and motivated architects. When commissioned abroad, they usually partner up with local partners specializing in architectural engineering, cost calculation, and site supervision.

In 2015 Extensa, a leading Belgian Real Estate investor and developer, was able to purchase the site and decided to restore the old buildings with respect for their patrimonial value. They started with the old station, the Gare Maritime. At this point in time, the building was in a terrible state, and the challenge was therefore to bring back its former glory whilst modernizing it by implementing the modern sustainable architecture. Not only the proportions of the space but also the beautiful detailed structures and ornaments inspired Extensa. Their idea was to transform this amazing building into an indoor city in the heart of the capital of Belgium that had a “Mediterranean climate” and to change the more than 40000 m2 transport hub into an area of shops, restaurants, offices, and showrooms, and once again make Gare Maritime accessible to the public. The idea was to create an atmosphere and a feeling as if you walked through the doors of Gare Maritime, as if you stepped into a world reminding you of the Ramblas in Barcelona. In the early 16th century, this area around Brussel consisted more or less of marshland. It was at the time bought by the aristocratic family of Tour et Taxis. This acquisition should, later on, become the first international postal service in Europe, connecting the Spanish Dutch, Burgundy, and Spain to the rest of Europe. This can also be one of the reasons behind the idea of a Mediterranean atmosphere inside the Gare Maritime today.

Architect Jan de Moffarts and the Bureau of Construction Technique were asked to renovate the Gare Maritime with its many steel pillars, glasses, and wooden roof, including the internal design. From the NMBS (43), they get hold of the historic archival material, including an impressive amount of plans and details. It showed an important historical value of a unique building.

They decided to restore the original structure, but had to omit the ornaments who unfortunately had been severely damaged during earlier restoration. Gare Maritime, as well as the Central Station in Antwerp, was one of the last railway buildings that were restored with its original baldachin. Today it is an eco-friendly, sustainable city center.

As mentioned previously, the plan was to add 17.000 square meters of solar panels on the roof, turning it into a zero-energy building. For this to be feasible, the main structure that was being re-used had to be strong enough. A representative from the Structural engineering company Ney & Partners (44); Thijs van Roosbroeck, analyzed the building’s structure. The building does not use any dividing walls on the inside, creating an illusion that it is one large structure. This is actually not the case as it is a repetition of three larger halls. These halls are then connected with smaller halls in between. Together this creates an area of more than 40.000 square meters. The structure of the halls is a combination of hinged frames, both bolted and riveted into place. The halls are closed off at the ends, using large glazed windows and a brick façade. The old roofing panels were removed and sandblasted down to the bare wood. The panels were repurposed and placed back onto the steel support structures.

Ney & Partners eventually concluded that the main structure was mostly sufficient to support the new plans. Most of the structure was still in good condition, with the main problem being corrosion around the connections between the halls. Therefore, minor repairs had to be done, and some areas had to be strengthened.

The new adaption of the building uses a lot of the old building and demands, therefore, a meticulous and complex design within these limits. The steel support pillars are spaced evenly throughout every twelve meters, with huge glass openings in between to produce enough natural light. The triple-glazed panes are electrochromic glass which uses sensors to darken the glazing.

The large windows were fitted with immense screens, not readily available. The only company that was able to provide screens that would cover the whole window in one piece was Renson (45). Extensa chose this because of the look and the lower cost.

The new program of the building, as mentioned previously, would be mixed-use. It accommodates shops, workshops, restaurants, and public spaces and keeps the center of the building as the main public space. It is a wide public space of sixteen meters, leaving a lot of space for greenery, gardens, and trees. OMGEVING (46) (translated to English; surroundings) architects are the designers of the green spaces inside. They created four different parks, all based on a different theme. The flower garden, the grass garden, the fragrance garden, and the woodland garden. All of the gardens have been adapted to fit into the special climate that is created inside the building, the Mediterranean climate. In addition to the green spaces, artist Henri Jacobs designed eight mosaics.

The new development is the largest CLT-based (cross-laminated timber) project located in Europe. The previously mentioned engineering company, Ney & Partners, joined together with Bureau Bouwtechniek (47). They realized the design of Neutelings Riedijk Architects. The Structural bases in CLT and covered facades using oak FSC (48), certificated and sustainable managed foresting. There are multiple reasons why CLT is more favorable than concrete, one of which was the weight, which was reduced massively (a reduction of factor five). Secondly, due to the CLT, a lot of the parts could be pre-fabricated off site. This made the construction process a lot shorter. It also made it possible to create modular parts, which are easily disassembled and changeable, like the removable elements. During the process, Neutelings Riedijk Architects followed the idea of a circular economy. This meant that the twelve CLT modules, are easily dismantled and its pieces can be re-used for other projects. All of the buildings are up to four to five-story tall. One of the major problems due to its sheer size of the construction was the thermal expansion rate of the steel structure. This resulted in a gap of seven centimetres between the historical structure and the new CLT volumes.

The pre-fabricated parts were done by the ZUBLIN Timber company (49), specializing in large wood constructions. They managed to follow a very tight time schedule, the total period of construction lasted for twelve months, in which over 9.000 cubed meters of wood was used. 6.000 cubed meters of LENO CLT, 3.000 cubed meters of glued laminated wood, 200 cubed meters of veneer, and 80 cubed meters of beech. Besides a large amount of pre-fab parts, a special screwed connection was designed. This made the onsite assembly possible.

The new Gare maritime constitutes a major part of the development of Tour & Taxis.

This building is constructed to contain an internal street on the axis of the building. Among the public functions are a restaurant, reception rooms, auditoriums, exhibition space, and meeting centers. They are all connected to this internal street, including the two public gardens and integrated works of art. Above the office, floors are situated around two major greenhouses. It forms a compact and bright building with an omnipresence of natural light. The building has achieved superior sustainability scores in Belgium.

Until a couple of decades ago, the aperitif company Byrrh was linked to the area by its own railway. They had their own entrepot at Tour & Taxis. The wine was especially popular in the early 1900’s. The barrels were delivered by train from the south of France; after arrival, they were bottled locally and redistributed across Europe. In the 1960’s its popularity dropped, and the depot was abandoned.

The characteristic corner building was purchased in 2007 by the public social service center (CPAS), and later with financial aid from the Brussels-Region and European funds, transformed into a business hub. Since 2019, the project focuses on sustainability and the circular economy, as well as cultural and social projects.

Up till the 1970’s the Sheds were used to store imports arriving at Tour & Taxis via the Gare Maritime. With the rest of the buildings, they were shut down in the 80’s. In the 2000’s renovations converted them into an epicenter for cultural events in Brussels. They host some of Brussels’ biggest artistic and cultural events. Amongst them BRAFA, Art Brussels, Festival Couleur Café, the Brussels Design Market, La Foi du Livre, Brussels Fashion Day, and even the International Brussels Tattoo Convention.

Originating from the early 1900s, the main building of the Tour and Taxis complex is the Royal Warehouse. It served as a storage and customs clearance facility. It is a beautiful example of industrial architecture. The high glass roof and massive interior allow an abundance of natural light throughout the building. The designers of the Royal Depot have managed to achieve a fine balance between old and new. One only has to look at the modern glass flooring to see the amount of effort delivered. It covers and displays the original railways reminding them of the history behind the heritage building.

After the intervention, the Royal Warehouse now houses a variety of shopping options and four high-end restaurants.

L’Hôtel des douanes (The Customs House), was built in 1907 according to the plans of architect Ernest Van Humbeek. The style is the same as that of the Royal Warehouse. In 2008 The Hôtel des douanes was structurally renovated. The ultimate goal is to open a real hotel, but that is a work in progress. In the meantime, the building is used by a publicity and marketing agency.

The Hotel de la Poste is the old post office. Also, this building has been renovated. The ground floor now contains a party room. A complimentary renovation has been carried out on the other floors: a bar, restaurant, cinema, gallery, meeting rooms, and commercial spaces. The design contains circulation, evacuation, and integration of lifts, compartmentalization, and the integration of techniques in relation to heritage. Lastly, a terrace was constructed on the first floor in front of the dining room. It is meant to integrate this new space into its materiality whilst leaving the monumentality of the building unchanged.

The Hotel de la Poste is now a wonderful event lounge including a private cinema. In the near future the opening of a trendy bistro-restaurant will follow.

The intention is to offer accommodation for multiple generations thanks to a combination of apartments, service flats, and a residential care home.

This is an area that will contain housing. The precise plans are not yet known. Recently EFFEKT (58) has been chosen as one of five firms to design the 65,000m2 residential complex. The master plan was developed by MVRDV (59) and will be kept on as urban planners. The project will have main focus on sustainability.

ARC20 Architecture Award 2020 (60) Winner Belgian Building Awards - Utility Building (61) Winner Belgian Timber Construction Award 2020 - non-residential (62) European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Awards 2021 (63) ULI Europe Award for Excellence 2021 (64) RES Awards 2020 - Best Commercial Development (65) Shortlist Zumtobel Group Award (66) Most innovative heat pump project (BE)

The intervention of the Thurn & Taxis site, and especially the Gare Maritime is example of heritage re-use. The history of the site is incontestable, as it was the terrain used by one of the first postal services and later on one of the first railways on the continent.

The attention to detail and sustainability is almost unprecedented. Creative solutions were found to integrate the sustainable factor into the building without losing authenticity. The appraisal shows the number of articles and publications on the project. It has won numerous prizes and awards.

As with all projects of this scale, it is not embraced by all stakeholders. There are certainly some points that need to be addressed in the future, like the impact on logistics. A good solution would be to have a tram line running to and from the site.

All in all a very meticulous and well thought out project which demonstrates all the complexity of sustainable adaptive re-use.