European quarter facelift
Beginning April the Brussels-Capital Region (one of the three Belgian regions) in partnership with the European Commission and the City of Brussels, launched an urban design competition for the European district.
According to the Commission's press release, the goal is to "define an urban design with a strong symbolic identity, featuring convivial public spaces, giving prioirty to non-motorised mobility and public transport, and providing buildigns of high environmental quality and architectural value."
This plan envisages the office space of the Commission to increase from 170.000 m2 to 400.000 m2, and increase density from an average of 4.5 to 8.0 (floor/ground ratio). Housing should also be introduced (from 0 to 110.000 m2) and retail should be doubled (from 20.000 to 40.000 m2).
RICS is currently organising its Sustainable Urban Regeneration Lecture series at various locations in Brussels. The first lecture, held in March, was about the European quarter and thus highly topical. After the summer break, RICS will present a list of recommendations on sustainable urban regeneration.
It will be very interesting to follow this competition and see if the heart of Europe can be a role model for sustainable urban design.