Renovation of iconic Blue Tower at Avenue Louise

Brussels State Secretary for Urbanism and Heritage Pascal Smet announced that the Brussels-Capital Region issued the planning permit for the renovation of the iconic Blue Tower at Avenue Louise. Thanks to thorough renovation works this Brussels postmodernist tower will fit better into the urban landscape and will open up to the neighbourhood. The Blue Tower's role as a landmark in the Brussels skyline will increase. This will be possible by opting for offices and shops on the street side, creating a 360° panoramic rooftop and adding plants to the surrounding public space. Moreover, the renovation will restore this heritage, which symbolises functionalist architecture, to its former glory.

“The Blue Tower is a witness to the functionalist architecture of the 1970s. It is one of the Brussels towers that everyone knows and a integral part of the Brussels skyline. Its transformation will bring it into the 21st century. By applying the Good Living guidelines, this tower will become another example of the urban development ambition for our region. The project will offer different uses, among other things with shops on the street side, and will create space for plants and sustainable mobility. With a 360° rooftop, the building will also be open to the neighbourhood and the general public. The Blue Tower is thus ready for the future, with respect for its unique aesthetic characteristics,” explained Pascal Smet, State Secretary for Urbanism and Heritage.

Formerly known as the SAIFI Tower, the Blue Tower was inaugurated in 1976. Architect Henri Montois had opted for a functionalist design. The tower fitted into a 1970s guideline plan for Avenue Louise, which involved five office buildings and continued the avenue’s gradual transformation that had begun in the 1930s. Together with the IT Tower and the Louise Tower, it was one of three towers built along the prestigious avenue. Despite having been partially renovated in 1997 and 2015 with a new entrance hall and an esplanade, its current renovation shows a lot more ambition. 

Designed by architecture firm LD2 Architecture, the project aims to revitalise this triangular urban island by opting for diversity, with shops and offices, and by creating a large panoramic sky bar on the roof. The whole will be more transparent and readable, offer improved aesthetics and become more dynamic, while preserving the site’s original and unique characteristics (iconic blue glass facades...).

“The Blue Tower is one of the most emblematic towers of the Brussels skyline. Now it will have a mixed function. Thanks to the rooftop, all Brusselers will be able to enjoy the view,” said Ans Persoons, alderwoman for Urbanism for the city of Brussels.

Specifically, the renovation project consists of three different interventions:

1. Creation of a sky bar, a spacious terrace with a 360° panorama and crowning of the tower:

As the renovation’s key element, the project will add three additional floors with offices and a large panoramic terrace with a sky bar that will crown the building. 

In this new upper part, the building will include an indent. Indeed, only the central core will be extended to the ground floor + 28 storeys. This new space will offer a large 360° panoramic terrace for the public to enjoy during weekends and holidays. This volumetric transition crowns the tower by gradually refining it.

Instead of a ground floor + 25 storeys, the main building profile will thus consist of a ground floor + 28 storeys + technical facilities for a total height of 106.75m.

2. Construction of a new corner building with shops and offices that is open and bright, has greenery and is turned towards the neighbourhood.

The project will create a new volume with three office floors at the end of the plot. (ground floor + 2 storeys + green roof). As the street slopes, the basement in Rue Vilain XIIII and Rue du Lac will gradually evolve into a ground floor on the street side, allowing the establishment of a shop. This shop will have a gross area of 1,441m² (including 753m² on basement -1 and 688m² on basement -2) and will accommodate a large speciality shop.

Optimisation of spaces and circulation was crucial in the entire design. Therefore, the entrances to the shops and office areas are separated from each other and the technical areas are integrated as much as possible. Transparency and light are central to the facade aesthetics. The project opens up views for local residents and offers large windows. The inside experience of the lively volume can be seen from the outside. Behind the curtain wall, an X structure will make this possible and will shape the identity of the new building.

3. Urban integration, plants and soft mobility

To make the project fit with the landscape and architecture, the pattern and language of the existing facades will be respected. The facades will be treated vertically and the office floors at +26 and +27 will have a soft blue tint, which will make them relatively transparent and ensure consistency with the existing facade. The core facades extending beyond the terrace will be treated with aluminium panels in a “gold bronze” colour. These panels will reflect light and give the cladding a shimmering golden crown in the rhythm of the texture. 

Great attention also goes to nature and biodiversity in the planned buildings and in the public areas of the entire building block. Thanks to a study by landscape architects Kollektif, the renovation will integrate the creation of a green roof with a maximum of water retention surface on the roof of the triangle (new building) and new vegetation on the esplanade and in the patios, which will be able to climb several walls of the buildings. In parallel, a design proposal for public spaces adjacent to the renovation project has been developed. The intention is to give the immediate surroundings as much greenery as possible.

Finally, the project also pays attention to mobility, adding a bicycle parking space with 118 places (including 7 for cargo bikes) in basement -2 that replaces the currently unexploited storage room. With the 18 new covered bicycle parking places on the ground floor and the 5 places on the left side of the entrance hall at Avenue Louise, the number of bicycle parking places will increase from 20 to 141.