Concept

Northern Quarter, Brussels

Summary
The Northern Quarter (Quartier Nord (Espace Nord), Noordruimte) is the central business district of Brussels, Belgium. Like La Défense in Paris, the Docklands in London or the Zuidas in Amsterdam, the Northern Quarter consists of a concentrated collection of high-rise buildings where many Belgian and multinational companies have their headquarters. The Northern Quarter roughly covers the area between Willebroek Quay, railways along Brussels-North railway station and the northern side of the Small Ring (Brussels' inner ring road). The territory is thus split between the municipalities of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Schaerbeek and the City of Brussels. The area is characterised by high-rise buildings, most around tall. Over half of the twenty tallest buildings in Belgium are located in the Northern Quarter. The area has around of office space occupied by 40,000 workers. It has an additional 8,000 residents. The area of what is today the Northern Quarter was first planned in the middle of the 19th century. Between 1850 and 1890, the north of Brussels heavily benefitted from industrialisation with the opening of Allée Verte/Groendreef railway station, as well as the industries along the Brussels–Charleroi Canal (the future Port of Brussels). This first station was replaced in March 1846 by a new monumental station, Brussels-North railway station, on the Place Charles Rogier/Karel Rogierplein, a short distance east from the original site, on the territory of the municipality of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode. Attracted by the industrial opportunities, many inhabitants settled in the area, first from the other Belgian provinces (mainly rural residents from Flanders) and France, then from Southern European, and more recently from Eastern European and African countries. Populated mainly by workers, the district was very popular, and had a very strong cultural identity. It was thus decided then to lay out new orthogonal streets on the axes of the Chaussée d'Anvers/Antwerpsesteenweg and the Boulevard d'Anvers/Antwerpselaan to accommodate this growing populace.
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