The Extension
Recognising the potential of this city-centre location and the success of the DoubleTree brand, Swedish hotel group Pandox is investing 35 million euros in the construction of an extension on a site adjacent to the building and covering an area of 7,300m2. A popular place for doing business and for leisure activities, the hotel is where two worlds come together and where guests receive the very best service in a setting that seamlessly fuses history and innovation.
This major extension takes the capacity of the DoubleTree by Hilton Brussels City from 354 to 505 fully refurbished rooms, the largest hotel capacity in Belgium. One of the many unique features and strengths of this extension is the construction of a second ballroom with a floor area of over 600m2 and four additional conference rooms to complement the existing ballroom and 16 meeting rooms. The project takes the hotel’s total floor area for hosting business and leisure events, including the lobby and reception areas, to nearly 2,750m2, the largest in the Belgian capital.
The hotel’s roof, which can be directly accessed from the street by an external lift, is home to a suspended 400m2 garden that is fully fitted out for guests and the general public. Meanwhile, the 650m2 rooftop bar and restaurant covers two floors and offers panoramic views of the botanic garden, the Rogier Tower, the old town and the Place Rogier. Situated at ground level, in the corner of the Place Rogier, a 250m2 retail space that is separate to the hotel in terms of its location and access will in all probability be occupied by an internationally renowned restaurant concept. The first floor will be home to a large, state-of-theart and fully equipped gym that will be open to hotel guests and local residents.
Italian firm Onsitestudio – Piovenefabi (www.onsitestudio.it) was selected to design the extension in tandem with the Belgian consultancy Bouwtechniek, beating off competition from 71 other bids. The construction project has been entrusted to the companies Denys and Socatra, who will operate in conjunction with each other.
Technical Prowess
Formerly known as Hôtel Le Palace, this geometric Art Nouveau hotel was built in 1908-09 by the architects Antoine Pompe and Adhèmar Lener. In keeping with the desire to respect the unique nature of the original building, Onsitestudio has come up with an innovative architectural project while creating a sense of continuity with the adjacent buildings, both in terms of size and proportionality. In this regard, the project seeks to carefully reinterpret the missing building, creating a new façade with a distinctly urban feel. With its bow windows, the extension recalls the architecture of 19th century Brussels and also echoes the neighbouring building by Lener and Pompe and the work of Victor Horta. A central atrium with overhead lighting will connect the old and new buildings, and the façade will mix prefabricated concrete with Pierre Bleue and Pierre de France.
The project is highly technical and complex. The extension will sit partly on cantilevered foundations, as the ground on which they will rest lies 32 metres below the surface, and partly on metro lines that run at a tangent to the building. More than 100 pillars will be driven into the ground at a depth of more than 75m.
Sustainable Construction
The hotel extension will meet the strict sustainability criteria set out by the BREAAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) international standard and will be granted this certification as a result. The measures used by BREEAM assessment cover a wide variety of categories and criteria ranging from energy to the environment and also including water use, health and well-being, pollution, transport, materials, waste, and management processes. The assessment sets out a benchmark standard for sustainable construction and has become one of the most comprehensive and widely used methods for evaluating and describing the environmental performance of buildings.
Pascal Smet, secretary of state of the Brussels-Capital Region :
« The redevelopment of Place Rogier should be the catalyst for it to become a leading Brussels destination. Pandox AB is making a major investment in the Place Rogier, with a refurbished Hotel Indigo Brussels City complete with a dynamic urban bar and restaurant, the renovation of the DoubleTree by Hilton Brussels City and now the icing on the cake: the extension of the DoubleTree by Hilton. In terms of urban development, the project will complete this corner of the square, while the activities on the ground floor will bring life to the square and the rooftop and hanging gardens will lend it character. I cannot wait for the opening. »
Emir Kir, burgomaster of Saint-Josse-Ten-Noode:
« A high quality architectural project such as this is a genuine asset for the municipality of Saint-Josse. It forms part of a collective effort by the public and private sectors to continue with the overall development of the north zone of the last few years. The municipality is also working hand in hand with the hotel and the Mission Locale de Saint-Josse to support the hotel industry, which creates lots of jobs. »
