Joseph 70

Jozef II-straat 70, 1000 Brussels
2025-2029

An urban forest in the European Quarter

In the heart of Brussels’ European Quarter, a large-scale office building occupies half a cityblock. ATAMA proposes a complete transformation that turns the anonymous, introverted building into a site that opens up to the city and its users. The closed, inaccessible and monofunctional plinth is replaced by a fully accessible, open-plan base, brought to life by shops and catering establishments. Portals, edged with reused natural stone, mark the entrances. The largest portal on Jozefstraat provides access to a double-height urban hall, a generous lobby between the street and the offices. The central mineral-paved square is demolished along with one underground car park level, making way for a small ‘urban forest’, an intensively planted green lung.

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A conference centre is situated around this sunken garden. Targeted interventions on the existing structure allow the building to reconnect with the city. The listed but unused historic façade is restored to its former glory. The sloping roof is removed and replaced by a double-storey roof level that recedes where necessary to adapt to the context. The staggered, horizontal cornices and vertical fins in galvanised steel give the façade a rhythm in keeping with the neighbourhood.

A green heart

A simple retrofit was not enough to transform Joseph 70 into a contemporary workplace. The fundamental change that the site – situated in an almost entirely paved environment – requires is a green heart. Not just a few ornamental plants, but a substantial layer of substrate in which varied vegetation can grow to a considerable height. This requires space, which was created by demolishing one level of car parking. By focusing on high-quality bicycle storage facilities, equipped with good changing rooms, sufficient space and natural light, we are working towards a modal shift. The sunken garden also creates an additional natural light zone all around, which can be used as a meeting centre.

In the background, the office façades are clad in black-charred timber. The urban forest, which catches the light, will take on an even more central role in the user’s experience.