The urban think tank and activist group ARAU has launched a procedure to protect the Palais du Midi in Brussels, through an application to the 7 Most Endangered Monuments, a European programme run by Europa Nostra.
The Palais du Midi dates from 1880 and is listed in the Brussels architectural heritage inventory but does not enjoy protected status.
ARAU and the citizens’ movement of the Stalingrad-Lemonnier neighbourhood held a petition in June to attempt to secure protected status under architectural heritage. To date, no classification procedure has been initiated.
However, the Brussels-Capital Region Government has huge plans for the building on Avenue Stalingrad. To build the future Metro Line 3, the Brussels Government decided in June it would partially dismantle the palace to dig the metro tunnel from the inside. In September, the Region approved an accelerated procedure for partial dismantling of the South Palace.
Through the route of international recognition, ARAU wants to increase pressure on the Brussels Government to abandon the plan and still have the building, both its interior and facades, classified.
Credit: Belga / Nicolas Maeterlinck
The 7 Most Endangered Monuments Programme identifies endangered monuments in Europe and seeks to find a viable future for the endangered monuments through mobilisation of partners. The programme is organised by Europa Nostra, a pan-European federation of non-governmental organisations committed to preserving cultural heritage in Europe.
Some of the examples of this year’s protected monuments were, for example, the Memento Park in Hungarian Budapest, where Lenin and Karl Marx statues or other memorabilia from the Hungarian Soviet era have been neglected for years. Interestingly, the monumental Kortrijk Railway Station, was also among the seven protected monuments.
Europa Nostra will announce the next seven monuments in spring 2024.
