The Gare Maritime was transformed by Neutelings Riedijk Architects and Jan De Moffarts Architecten from a post-industrial ruin into a new office and retail district under a steel canopy. As Willem Jan Neutelings says: ‘We’ve designed a new part of the city, a city where it never rains, but with a pleasant, temperature-controlled climate that follows the seasons.’
When it built the largest freight station in Europe in 1902, Belgium was not only raising its economic game but also demonstrating its engineering prowess. The Gare Maritime is a monumental 280 m long building that comprises three large and four small halls. The load-bearing structure consists of a series of three-hinged arches and is one of the last examples of railway architecture from this period to retain its original canopy.
When Extensa purchased the site, the building was in a terrible state. The first challenge, therefore, was to restore this industrial ruin to its former glory. Architect Jan De Moffarts and Bureau Bouwtechniek were commissioned to renovate the building’s steel structure, façades and roofs, and to develop a vision for the internal organization of the seven halls.
The second phase of the project was commissioned from Neutelings Riedijk Architects. This office turned the former goods station into a ‘city in a city’. By accommodating the requested programme of 45,000m2 of offices and commercial spaces within 12 compact buildings on the periphery of the outer halls, they managed to keep the three middle halls completely open. Not only does this preserve the majestic spaciousness of these halls, but it also creates a central boulevard surrounded by trees and plants. Five side streets and squares complete the urban structure and transform the Gare Maritime into a fully fledged (covered) district.
The new volumes consist of three storeys and are built entirely in wood (CLT). Thanks to a 1.20 m modular grid, they fit into the existing 12 m column rhythm of the halls with integrity. Measuring three bays long (36 m) and 38 m deep, these are separated by the side streets (one bay wide) and coincide with the arched windows in the side wall. The pavilions are entirely independent of the steel-column structure (which remains clearly visible) and they connect with the side walls while also running up to the ridge of the halls. ‘It was a technical challenge, resulting in complex construction details as wood and steel will expand in completely different ways’, says Willem Jan Neutelings.
The new interpretation of the Gare Maritime breathes fresh life into an industrial monument. Not only through the respectful handling and intelligent reinterpretation of the existing structure, but also – and remarkably – through the creation of unprecedented perspectives. The new boulevard celebrates the monumentality of the building. The terraces and balconies offer unexpected close-ups of the structural details. Both the public and private open spaces bring, quite literally, a new dimension to the Gare Maritime.
