Miramar Residence protected
Postwar modernist architecture valued
“The Miramar Residence was designed to welcome visitors to the 1958 world’s fair. It was built with modern materials and is one of the emblematic buildings that shape Brussels and its image. The residence is a witness of an era. Not only Art Nouveau and Art Deco deserve protection in Brussels, but also modernist buildings receive our full attention. We must protect them today in order to explain the history of our region tomorrow,” said State Secretary for Heritage Pascal Smet.
"This recognition of the Miramar building by the Region reinforces an already dynamic policy of heritage conservation in Saint-Josse. We can rejoice because this architectural building, a symbol of post-war modernism, has indeed left few traces as important as this one," said Mayor Emir Kir.
History of the building
The Miramar Residence is an apartment building with commercial areas on the ground floor, designed by architect Claude Laurens. It was built in the context of the creation of the North-South connection. The various residences that originally stood on the site in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode were demolished and the vacant land was sold publicly in October 1956 by the National Service for the completion of the North-South connection.
The blue and white Glasal panels and the unusual window arrangements give the building a colourful and playful character that can be associated with the architecture of the first decade after World War II. Typical of this period is the use of the equally playful boomerang shape that gives the building a certain dynamic.
The protection follows an application by the municipality in July 2020 and received a favourable advice from the Brussels heritage committee “Commission royale des Monuments et des Sites”. From now on, the facades, roofs and circulation areas (the entrance hall, the two stairwells, the lifts and the corridors) of the Miramar Residence will be protected.
Address of the property: 1, Place Saint-Lazare, Saint-Josse-ten-Noode
The protection measure allows the property to be revalued and to be preserved. It remains perfectly possible to adapt it to the specific needs of commercial activity. This measure will also encourage a return to the legibility of the original concept through the upgrading of the ground floor.
