| Europa building | |
|---|---|
.jpg) The Europa building in Brussels, seen from across theRue de la Loi/Wetstraat | |
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| Former names | Résidence Palace - Bloc A |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | |
| Location | Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat 155, 1040City of Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium |
| Coordinates | 50°50′33″N4°22′51″E / 50.84250°N 4.38083°E /50.84250; 4.38083 |
| Current tenants | Seat of theEuropean Council andCouncil of the European Union |
| Construction started | 1922 (1922) |
| Completed | 1927 (1927) |
| Renovated | November 2007–December 2016 |
| Renovation cost | €321 million |
| Technical details | |
| Floor area | 70,646 m2 (760,430 sq ft) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Michel Polak |
| Renovating team | |
| Architects | Philippe Samyn and Partners (architects & engineers, Lead and Design Partner) Studio Valle Progettazioni Buro Happold |
| Renovating firm | Jan De Nul Group (contractor, Lead and Construction Partner) |
| Other designers | Georges Meurant |
TheEuropa building is the seat of theEuropean Council andCouncil of the European Union, located on theRue de la Loi/Wetstraat in theEuropean Quarter ofBrussels, Belgium.[1] Its defining feature is the multi-storey "lantern-shaped" construct holding the main meeting rooms; a representation of which has been adopted by both the European Council and Council of the EU as their official emblems.[2]
The Europa building is situated on the former site of the partially demolished and renovated Bloc A of theRésidence Palace, a complex of luxurious apartment blocks. Its exterior combines thelistedArt Deco façade of the original 1920s building with thecontemporary design of the architectPhilippe Samyn. The building is linked via twoskyways and a service tunnel to the adjacentJustus Lipsius building, which provides for additional office space, meeting rooms and press facilities.
Following the end of theFirst World War, theWalloon businessman Lucien Kaisin, in collaboration with the Swiss-Belgian architectMichel Polak, put forward plans for a complex of luxurious apartment blocks for thebourgeoisie andaristocracy, the Résidence Palace, to be situated on the edge of Brussels'Leopold Quarter. Consisting of five "Blocs" (A–E), it was to be "a small town within a city" able to provide its residents with onsite facilities, including a theatre hall, a swimming pool, as well as other commercial services such as a restaurants and hairdressers.[3] The Résidence Palace aimed to address the dual shortage of suitable property and domestic workers for the upper classes followingthe destruction brought about during the war. The foundation stone of theArt Deco building was laid on 30 May 1923 with the first residents moving in 1927.
The development, however, only had a short commercial success. In 1940, tenants were forced to leave,[4] as the building was requisitioned as the headquarters of theoccupyingGerman army during theSecond World War.[5] In September 1944, after theliberation of Brussels, the building was taken over as headquarters for theSupreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) and theRAF Second Tactical Air Force.[6] After the war, in 1947, theBelgian government bought the complex and used Bloc A (the north-eastern L-shaped building) for administrative offices.[7] At the end of the 1960s, as part of work to modernise the area during the construction of an underground railway line beneath theRue de la Loi/Wetstraat, a newaluminium façade was built, closing the L-shape, under the supervision of Michel Polak's sons.
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With the development of theEuropean Quarter in Brussels, city planners struggled to find suitable office space to house the growing staff and needs of theEuropean Union (EU)'s institutions situated in close proximity to the Résidence Palace. In 1988, the eastern part of the Résidence Palace (Blocs D and E) was demolished to make way for the construction of theJustus Lipsius building as the seat of theCouncil of the European Union.
In 2002, theEuropean Council, the organisation gathering the EU'sHeads of state/government together, also began using the Justus Lipsius building as their Brussels venue. This followed an advanced implementation of a decision by European leaders during ratification of theNice Treaty to do so at such a time as the total membership of the EUsurpassed eighteen member states. Prior to this, the venue for European Council summits was in the member state that held the rotatingpresidency of the Council of the European Union. The resulting growing international media presence in the area led the Belgian government to develop Blocs C and B as the site of its newInternational Press Centre. A swimming pool and theatre were also maintained.
However, in 2004, leaders decided the logistical problems created by the outdated facilities warranted the construction of a new purpose-built seat able to cope with the nearly 6,000 meetings, working groups, and summits per year. This being despite a number of renovations to the Justus Lipsius building, including the conversion of an underground car park into additional meeting rooms. The Belgian government proposed as a solution the conversion of Bloc A of the Résidence Palace into a new permanent seat for both EU institutions.[8] Under the deal, the site would be transferred from the Belgian government to theCouncil's Secretariat for the symbolic price of €1, with the Council of the EU assuming the costs for the subsequent construction project.[9]
A pan-European competition was opened to redesign Bloc A of the Résidence Palace to suit the needs of the institutions. As the original Art Deco façades of the Résidence Palace building were listed ashistoric monuments, competition rules stated that these had to be retained.[10] In 2005, it was announced that a team involving the architectPhilippe Samyn and Partners (architects and engineers), lead and design partner, in collaboration with Studio Valle Progettazioni (architects), andBuro Happold (engineers) had succeeded in submitting the winning design.[8]
The design for what was to be later named the Europa building, involved the demolition of the 1960s extension, and the construction of a large glass-cubedatrium connecting the two renovated wings of the original 1920s L-shaped building. Within the atrium was to be constructed a "lantern-shaped" structure housing the main meeting rooms where the EU's delegations to the European Council and Council of the EU would meet.[7][11] Due to EU leaders desire for the building to beeco-friendly, the design was adapted to include solar panels on the roof and recycle rain water.[9]
Construction work on the Europa building began in 2007, with the building originally planned to be finished and inaugurated by 2012.[12] However, due to setbacks and modifications to the design following the evolution of the European Council's needs as an institution during theLisbon Treaty reforms, the building was completed in December 2016. Philippe Samyn and Studio Valle Progrettazioni received worldwide praise for the clever design. Nonetheless, in 2019, it emerged that the building had been constructed with unpaid work and illegal labour from mainly Bulgarian workers.[13]
A defining characteristic of the Europa building is the use of striking colour compositions designed by the painter Georges Meurant. The lead architect, Philipe Samyn, wished to break with the visual "uniformity" of other EU buildings, believing that the EU was "not being served well by itsblue flag with its twelve stars".[14] Further, he believed it "too bland an image of the multiple institutional, social, cultural constellations that structure European conscience". Samyn, inspired by the boldness of the Dutch architectRem Koolhaas' 2002 "barcode" flag, commissioned Meurant to reflect the national heraldic symbols and flags, of the 28 member states in their diverse proportions and colours.[14] Meurant's orthogonalpolychrome grid designs appear over ceilings in meeting rooms, doors, carpet flooring in conference rooms, as well as in the corridors, press room, catering facilities and elevators.[14] Samyn and Meurant saw this as a way to not only bring more light and a warmer atmosphere into the building, and particular in the meeting rooms, which for security reasons had to remain windowless, but also to create a visual message, of "permanent creative effort and political debate" befitting a polyglottic diverse Union.[14]
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