Etterbeek and US at odds over new embassy site

The Brussels municipality of Etterbeek is at odds with the United States over the future site of the new American embassy.

Local authorities say the Americans began security work on the site near Merode without a permit, Bruzz reports, and the Americans responded to the official cease and desist with court proceedings.

The Americans aim to occupy the former ING headquarters in 2030, which covers 60,000m² and currently sits empty.

Both the US embassy for Belgium and the representation to the EU must be given a place there and the move is considered urgent, partly because their current location on the inner ring road is difficult to secure.

The structural security work on the future site at Cours Saint-Michel will not be finished for several years. But in recent weeks, Americans erected a 750-metre-long and 3-metre-high anti-climb fence around the entire building and gave it three secure entrance gates.

Since the work was being carried out without a permit, Etterbeek city council responded with an official report and a cease and desist order.

“It’s unthinkable that measures are being taken to secure the building without taking urban planning regulations into account,” the city council said.

“The municipality is obliged to ensure that citizens comply with the law, but it must also ensure that governments do the same.”

The US did cease construction work, but at the same time filed proceedings with a judge in order to overturn the cease and desist as soon as possible.

In the end, the judge in summary proceedings did not issue a ruling but the municipality of Etterbeek and the US sat down at the table and came to an agreement.

“It all went a bit wrong,” said mayor Vincent De Wolf (MR). “In recent years I have repeatedly emphasised that the Americans had to secure the site. It cannot be the intention to have squatters in such an immense building who you cannot get out.”

According to the mayor, there was no response to these questions in recent years. De Wolf thinks that the fact that a fence was suddenly erected without a permit application possibly has something to do with the change of president and therefore also of ambassador.

During the meeting, the Americans and the municipality of Etterbeek agreed that De Wolf would issue a police order which states that the US must take provisional security measures pending a regularisation request to the region for the measures already taken.

The provisional security measures include guards on site around the clock and camera surveillance via 20 cameras.

“The US delegation was delighted with the outcome and we concluded the meeting on excellent terms,” said De Wolf.

The future embassy's appearance is not yet clear, but when asked for more information, the embassy mentioned plans for water and energy conservation and native plants on the site, along with advanced security measures with as little visual impact as possible.

“In the past, the team of the previous ambassador did clarify a few of our main points,” said Corinne de Henau of the local neighbourhood committee.

“The new building will be narrower and less tall and will also be emblematic. The impact on local mobility would be limited and the embassy will keep the public park on the site open and maintained.”

For the time being, the committee is more positive about the project than it was about the previous plan, which included a lot of new housing, “but we will only have a real response once we see the plans”.

De Wolf sees advantages and disadvantages to hosting the American embassy in his municipality: “Of course it is honourable to have such an important institution in your municipality, but it will also cost us a lot of money. For example, governments do not pay urban planning charges. All in all, we will still miss out on €4 million a year. That is a lot for a municipality.”

The permit application for the new building is expected to be submitted this spring, the office of the secretary of state for urban development Ans Persoons said.

The work will not be completed before the summer of 2030.