The innovative project ‘ZIN in No(o)rd’ aims to reuse the emblematic WTC I and II towers located in the heart of the Northern Quarter in Brussels. Instead of a simple restoration of the existing building, it is a question here of adding an unprecedented dimension to the project by connecting the towers with a new volume of 14 double-height floors, creating a new condition for the development of a hybrid building mixing a new way of working on housing, a hotel, sports and leisure spaces, shops and lots of vegetation. The relationship to the city is also completely redesigned with an open ground floor with many addresses, developing a range of relationships to the city and the public space. The project is thus a response to the surrounding context and future developments. This new flexible concept will introduce a new standard in Europe for large-scale mixed buildings.

The project insists radically on reuse, not only by considering the current building as a material bank but also thanks to an innovative architectural concept. By playing intelligently with the conditions and by complementing them with a number of strategic interventions and a prospective dimension, a robust building is designed. In the future, it can adapt flexibly to changing use. By adding a new volume with double-height floors, by providing various traffic circuits with many accesses, and by activating the urban space as if it were a shared hall, a mixed complex is set up which has not been thought for a type of use, but which may evolve over time.

In ‘ZIN in No(o)rd’, about 3,900 Flemish officials will find a new, inspiring and sustainable workplace focused on the idea of exchange and flexibility. The office spaces will offer the opportunity to meet and collaborate in a green and healthy work environment with varied surroundings. The apartments will be rented, and an innovative concept is planned for the hotel part, in collaboration with a specialized operator.

• Location

  Brussels, Belgium

• Client

  Befimmo NV

• In collaboration with

  l'AUC, Jaspers-Eyers

• 51N4E project team

  Johan Anrys, Freek Persyn, Olivier Cavens, Louise Vanderlinden, Guillem Pons, Charlotte Schmidt, Janik Beckers, Hunter Doyle, Matthias Salaets, Laura Villeret, Alba Tavares Vanhoutte, Ruben Janssens, Gianni Villa

• Consultants

  Greisch (structure), VK Engineering (technical, EPB, durable energy, fire safety), De Fonseca (acoustics), VS-a (façade), Plant- en houtgoed (greenery), Drees & Sommer (circular building)

• Programme

  Mixed use - offices, apartments, hotel, retail, sport infrastructure, public (green) spaces

• Site surface

  10.800 m²

• Built surface

  115.000 m²

• Photography by

  Maxime Delvaux