Quarter
Most of the institutions are located within the European Quarter of Brussels, which is the unofficial name of the area corresponding to the approximate triangle between Brussels Park, Cinquantenaire Park and Leopold Park (with the Parliament's hemicycle extending into the latter). The Commission and Council are located in the heart of this area near to the Schuman station at the Schuman roundabout on the Rue de la Loi. The European Parliament is located over the Brussels-Luxembourg station, next to Luxembourg Square.
The area, a portion of which was known as the Leopold Quarter for much of its history, was historically residential, an aspect which was rapidly lost as the institutions moved in, although the change from a residential area to a more office oriented one had already been underway for some time before the arrival of the European institutions. Historical and residential buildings, although still present, have been largely replaced by modern offices. These buildings were built not according to a high quality master plan or government initiative, but according to speculative private sector construction of office space, without which most buildings of the institutions would not have been built. However, due to Brussels's attempts to consolidate its position, there was large government investment in infrastructure in the quarter. Authorities are keen to stress that the previous chaotic development has ended, being replaced by planned architecture competitions and a master plan (see "future" below).
Espace Léopold Justus Lipsius Résidence Palace Lex Delors(Committees) Triangle building (EEAS) Berlaymont Charlemagne Madou Tower Convent Van Maerlant Breydel building Schuman roundabout Leopold Park Cinquantenaire Place du
Luxembourg
Place du
Jean Rey Jardin du
Maelbeek
Place du Jourdan Mall Square Marie Louise Square
Palmerston
Square
Ambiorix Square
Marguerite
Frère Orban
Square
Square
Meeûs
Institute of Natural Sciences Maelbeek Schuman Schuman Brussels-Luxembourg Madou Arts-Loi Merode 1 2 3 4 5 Rue de la Loi Rue Belliard Avenue Cortenbergh Chaussée d'Etterbeek Rue Luxembourg Rue Froissart Commission Parliament Council Other Green Space Pedestrian Area Metro Station Rail Station
The quarter itself is highly centralised and criticised by some, for example Romano Prodi, for being an administrative ghetto isolated from the rest of the city (though this view is not shared by all). There is also a perceived lack of symbolism, with some such as Rem Koolhaas proposing that Brussels needs an architectural symbol to represent Europe (akin to the Eiffel Tower or Colosseum). Others do not think this is in keeping with the idea of the EU, with Umberto Eco viewing Brussels as a "soft capital"; rather than it being an "imperial city" of an empire, it should reflect the EU's position as the "server" of Europe. Despite this, the plans for redevelopment intend to deal with a certain extent of visual identity in the quarter.
Read more about this topic: Brussels And The European Union
Famous quotes containing the word quarter:
“Like the water, the Walden ice, seen near at hand, has a green tint, but at a distance is beautifully blue, and you can easily tell it from the white ice of the river, or the merely greenish ice of some ponds, a quarter of a mile off.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“I have started to say
“A quarter of a century”
Or “thirty years back”
About my own life.”
—Philip Larkin (1922–1986)
“I was able to believe for years that going to Madame Swann’s was a vague chimera that I would never attain; after having passed a quarter of an hour there, it was the time at which I did not know her which became to me a chimera and vague, as a possible destroyed by another possible.”
—Marcel Proust (1871–1922)