La Rue de la Loi

The situation of the Rue de la Loi is particularly fortunate for the installation of the european Commission, finds itself anchored into the heart of a living quarter of the city, rather than having been relegated into an isolated administrative zone. And this is also a piece of good luck for Brussels, where, precisely in its centre, discovers its role as a major European capital, as well as a metropolis of global importance. At present, the Rue de la Loi is closed in, a monotonous, rather drab corridor, hemmed in by the monarchical avenue which stretches from the Parc Royal to the Arcades du Cinquantenaire.
Christian de Portzamparc’s project is to progressively create a new administro-residential hub, into which the european Commission will integrate itself. This new pole will be modelled along the principals of the « open block », the famous Ilot Ouvert, so successfully exploited by Christian de Portzamparc since putting his urban and residential « human town » theories into practice in the seventies, with the Hautes Formes development, in Paris. The Rue de la Loi will be metamorphosed by this development, light being introduced, lateral vistas, and new perspectives being created, as the sky and the vertical volumes interplay with the existing volumes, albeit without any crush or crowding.