Move'Hub
Collective housing , Offices , Retail
The building block Bara - Blérot - Spaak, also known as 'îlot Tin Tin', is located in the heart of the Brussels South district.
The area is surrounded by diverse office and residential complexes. The project is strategically located: it combines the metropolitan character of the South District with the residential nature of the commune of Anderlecht and the international TGV and Eurostar lines. Move'Hub combines these three dimensions and creates both a connection and a destination.
In order to redefine the urban fabric and complete the currently unbuilt building block, the two existing waiting façades are joined together to create a coherent whole. The form is adapted to the four different urban situations around it: the future Esplanade de l'Europe (South Station), Boulevard Paul-Henri Spaak (Tour du Midi), Rue Bara (Cureghem neighbourhood) and Rue Blérot (Bloc 2/Eurostation office building). The project has a mixed programme of housing, offices, facilities and commercial spaces and proposes a strong density reduction in order to guarantee and maximise the quality of the undeveloped space.
The desire to maximise the quality of the housing motivates the decision to locate the housing programme in the direct extension of the existing residential buildings. 72 new dwellings are distributed over two volumes: a first, longer volume on Barastraat, and a second, shorter volume on Spaaklaan. This configuration not only creates permeable housing with a good orientation, but also directs the office programme towards the intermodal hub, which in turn increases its visibility.
The structural constraint resulting from the presence of the underground metro tunnel was integrated into the project as well. The office building consists of one volume above this tunnel and all office spaces are organised around it.
A large collective garden is laid out in the interior of the block and is exclusively for the use of the flats' residents.
