Generaal Jacques
The design for the Generaal Jacques site was part of a market research. A search for a new location for a school for the Vlaamse Gemeenschapscommissie.
Project Schools, Sports hall
Location Brussels, BE
Type Competition
Client
VGC
Team
SMAK Architects, Kairos nv
Status
not granted
Area
16,500 m2
Project
The site along Generaal Jacqueslaan, on the border between Etterbeek and Ixelles, covers approximately 7,000 m² and houses the former Royal Ice Cellars ‘Les Glacières Royales’. This historical patrimony forms the basis of the redevelopment, which is conceived as a pilot project within its existing urban environment.
The surrounding neighborhood is rich in a series of interesting adjacent sites, including the Federal Police, the Arsenal site, and the VUB. This interconnection of places creates a strong urban fabric in which heritage, education, and public function interlock and reinforce each other.
Program
Within this context, the construction program will cover a total area of 16,544 m², divided over three separate volumes, two dedicated to educational school volumes and one volume with communal functions that forms the backbone for both schools. The footprint of the new complex will occupy 2,975 m² on a site of approximately 7,604 m², creating additional space for robust greenery.
The design vision emphasizes sustainable development and an ecological interpretation of the site, but also a strong embedding in the urban context and collective outdoor spaces that are both functional and scenic. Heritage is not merely preserved but structurally integrated within the site.
Program
The site along Generaal Jacqueslaan, on the border between Etterbeek and Ixelles, covers approximately 7,000 m² and houses the former Royal Ice Cellars ‘Les Glacières Royales’. This historical patrimony forms the basis of the redevelopment, which is conceived as a pilot project within its existing urban environment.
The surrounding neighborhood is rich in a series of interesting adjacent sites, including the Federal Police, the Arsenal site, and the VUB. This interconnection of places creates a strong urban fabric in which heritage, education, and public function interlock and reinforce each other.
Three buildings, one campus
The design proposal presents three seemingly autonomous volumes that together function as a single educational cluster. The first volume, located on the Triomflaan, forms the visible gateway to the site with its front facade facing Generaal Jacqueslaan and houses the first secondary school.
The second volume also dedicated to a secondary school and has a partially sunken floor level that houses the school administration office, technical rooms, and the refectory, which overlook the semi-underground playground located in the center of the cluster.
The third volume is characterized by its transparent plinth, which allows the historic ice cellars to remain visible and accessible via the multipurpose room on the ground floor. Above this are workshops and clustered classrooms, crowned by the double-height sports hall with panoramic views.
Community school concept
The Glacières site focuses on the creation of two secondary schools with a combined total of 1,500 pupils, with complementary functions and multipurpose spaces that not only support the complex but also serve the wider neighborhood. A place that invites people to meet and share collective spaces, thus forming a meaningful added value that helps structure its existing urban fabric.
This translates into a lively school complex that compensates for the lack of public green space in the neighborhood and forms a green corridor between the Arsenaal-site and the university campus. The iconic chimney of the ice cellars remains standing as a beacon, marking the presence of heritage in the new development.
