ctbuh.org/papers Title: Building, Rebuilding or Renovating Contextual Sustainable Tall Buildings in a Historical European City Center Authors: Eric Ysebrant, Managing Director, ASSAR Architects Izidore Zielonka, Founding Partner, Art & Build Subjects: Architectural/Design Sustainability/Green/Energy Urban Design Keywords: Façade Renovation Sustainability Urbanization Publication Date: 2008 Original Publication: CTBUH 2008 8th World Congress, Dubai Paper Type: 1. Book chapter/Part chapter 2. Journal paper 3. Conference proceeding 4. Unpublished conference paper 5. Magazine article 6. Unpublished © Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat / Eric Ysebrant; Izidore Zielonka Building, Rebuilding or Renovating Contextual Sustainable Tall Buildings in a Historical European City Center: the Case of Brussels Eric Ysebrant1, Isidore Zielonka2 1Managing Director, ASSAR Architects, Chaussée de La Hulpe 181 bte 2, B-1170 Brussels, Belgium, Tel : + 32 2 676 71 00, Email: [email protected] 2Founding Partner, ART & BUILD Architect, Ch. de Waterloo 255/8, B-1060 Brussels, Belgium, Tel: +32 2 538 72 71, Email: [email protected] Abstract Old European cities will have to consider remodelling or rebuilding existing Tall Buildings within their city centers. Brussels, Belgium is a good example of such a trend. In the 1960’s, Brussels started to erect tall office buildings that were not compatible with the existing, historical urban fabric. These buildings gradually became obsolete at the turn of the millennium and will require renovating or rebuilding. In some cases the decision is to demolish these existing Tall Buildings to make room for new low-rise buildings. In other locations the decision is to rebuild taller than the existing Tall Buildings. In both cases, the contextual urban implementation has been revised and more useable space has actually been built. As opposed to most other European cities, Brussels has concentrated its Tall Building activity on obsolete buildings or obsolete tall building zones. The [email protected] [email protected] architects have put much effort into urban contextualization and into implementing sustainable features. The newly Biographybuilt/renovated towers include an array of energy saving features, such as active double skin façades and wastewater Architect Eric YSEBRANT (Belgian, 1943) is Founding Partner of the ASSAR/ART & BUILD association of architects. Therecovery newly processes, created Brussels-based which use advanced firm combinesbiological the and experience bacteriological of ART purification & BUILD techniques. ARCHITECT In recent and years,ASSAR Brussels ARCHI- TECTShas witnessed of which more Eric Ysebranthigh-rise isactivity also the than Founding any other Partner European in 1985. city,The associationapart from comprises Moscow. a The250 teamjoint ofventure architects of andASSAR–ART staff with offices & BUILD in Brusselshas a track , Luxembourg record of more and thanParis 50%and isof theseBelgium projects. ’s largest architectural group. ArchitectKeywords Isidore: Regeneration, ZIELONKA Renovation, (Belgian, Sustainability, 1942) is Founding Contextual, Partner Double-Skin of the ASSAR/ART & BUILD association of architects. The newly created Brussels-based firm combines the experience of ASSAR ARCHITECTS and ART & BUILD ARCHI- TECT of which Isidore Zielonka is also a Founding Partner in 1989. The association comprises a 250 team of architects and staffIntroduction with offices in Brussels , Luxembourg and Paris and is Belgiumbut with ’s nolargest human architectural relation to thegroup. street. Old European cities will generally have to consider This administrative status started in the 1960s and ASSAR/ARTremodelling, rebuilding& BUILD orhas building designed Tall projects Buildings covering in their virtually it required all fields to buildsuch Tall,as low- following and high-rise the American projects, example new and renovatedcity centers buildings, and Brussels, mixed-use, Belgium housing, is offices, an interesting retail and leisure,(see Figure hospitals 1). Buildingand research Tall laboratories has now expanded for the European into a Unionexample or ofGSK-GlaxoSmithKline such a trend. Brussels to has name become a few, one including of the defencenecessity projects in order such to respondas the 120,000-square-meter to economic and sustainable Belgian Militaryimportant Academy administrative or the new centers 200,000-square-meter in Europe with NATO a headquartersrequirements. project This underis also progress, reinforced the by latter the limitationproject is theof resultconcentration of an international of European competition institutions designed by(European SOM+ASSAR, its territoryboth projects to 19 beingcommunes located and in 160Brussels. sq km. The association hasCommission, designed more European office Parliament projects used and byEuropean the European Council Commission than any other architect. of Ministers and NATO in addition to numerous federal Theand projectsregional designed administrations by the partnersrelated toof thethe complexityassociation receivedof numerous awards including a MIPIM Award in Cannes, FranceBelgium’s for theadministration). renovation of the 34-story Madou Plaza and the 2000 PLEA Passive and Low Energy Architecture World Award Thisfor the administrative sustainable featuresstatus started implemented in the 1960s in the and 220.000-square-meter Berlaymont Building, the European Com- missionit required Headquarters. to build Tall, In followingthe last 5 theyears, American with about example 12 tall buildings built, rebuilt or renovated, Brussels has probably witnessed(see Figure more 1). tallBuilding buildings Tall activity has now than expanded any other into city ain Europe apart from Moscow and ASSAR/ART & BUILD has anecessity track record in order of more to respond than 50% to ofeconomic all these and Brussels sustainable high-rise projects. Such projects include the 27-story Covent Garden andrequirements. the 23-story ThisEllipse is Buildingalso reinforced featuring by a thelow-rise limitation building unit and a high-rise one designed in a way to create a har- moniousof its territory link to to the 19 existing communes urban and fabric. 160 sq km. The early 1960s saw the erection of a number of Manyoffice buildings buildings designed that were by not the compatible association with include Brussels’s an array of energy savings features such as active double skin façades withhistorical operable urban windows fabric, allowingwhich is forcharacterized fresh air ventilation by narrow in all rooms located. Some projects include wastewater recovery processesplots of 4-storyusing advanced residential biological around mixed-useand bacteriological city block purification techniques. Water is recovered at the end of the pro- cesscenters. and isIf stored a few in aTall pond Buildings of non drinkable were erected water. Iton is recycleda into the building for sanitary flushing, for building and gardenpedestrian maintenance. slab as in France, most adopted the model to fill-in what used to be a lively city block on a few levels, Figure 1 – Espace Nord area administrative quarter, Brussels, Belgium CTBUH 8th World Congress 2008 1 Building, Rebuilding or Renovating Contextual Sustainable Tall Buildings in a Historical European City Center: the Case of Brussels Eric Ysebrant1, Isidore Zielonka2 1Managing Director, ASSAR Architects, Chaussée de La Hulpe 181 bte 2, B-1170 Brussels, Belgium, Tel : + 32 2 676 71 00, Email: [email protected] 2Founding Partner, ART & BUILD Architect, Ch. de Waterloo 255/8, B-1060 Brussels, Belgium, Tel: +32 2 538 72 71, Email: [email protected] Abstract Old European cities will have to consider remodelling or rebuilding existing Tall Buildings within their city centers. Brussels, Belgium is a good example of such a trend. In the 1960’s, Brussels started to erect tall office buildings that were not compatible with the existing, historical urban fabric. These buildings gradually became obsolete at the turn of the millennium and will require renovating or rebuilding. In some cases the decision is to demolish these existing Tall Buildings to make room for new low-rise buildings. In other locations the decision is to rebuild taller than the existing Tall Buildings. In both cases, the contextual urban implementation has been revised and more useable space has actually been built. As opposed to most other European cities, Brussels has concentrated its Tall Building activity on obsolete buildings or obsolete tall building zones. The architects have put much effort into urban contextualization and into implementing sustainable features. The newly built/renovated towers include an array of energy saving features, such as active double skin façades and wastewater recovery processes, which use advanced biological and bacteriological purification techniques. In recent years, Brussels has witnessed more high-rise activity than any other European city, apart from Moscow. The joint venture of ASSAR–ART & BUILD has a track record of more than 50% of these projects. Keywords: Regeneration, Renovation, Sustainability, Contextual, Double-Skin Introduction but with no human relation to the street. Old European cities will generally have to consider This administrative status started in the 1960s and remodelling, rebuilding or building Tall Buildings in their it required to build Tall, following the American example city centers and Brussels, Belgium is an interesting (see Figure 1). Building Tall has now expanded into a example of such a