B&R and LIFE co-develop iconcic Art Deco brewery site Atlas in Anderlecht

Antwerp, January 25, 2024 – B&R Bouwgroep and LIFE are pleased to announce that they will work side by side as co-developers on the redevelopment of the iconic Atlas brewery site in Anderlecht. B&R has had the site in its portfolio for several years and will now partner with LIFE for its further redevelopment.

Both parties are convinced of the synergy in their specific know-how: B&R as a contractor with strong expertise in value engineering and LIFE as creator of innovative urban concepts with an eye for beauty and detail. This is a fine example of how B&R wishes to approach future projects: developer and contractor working together to optimize a project in all its facets through cross-fertilization of common knowledge and expertise.

The site, located on the Vrij Onderzoeksstraat, has facilitated several breweries since 1913 and was named”Brasserie de Saint-Guidon,” which at the time was a typical Brussels brewery on steam power. Over 100 years, the site continued to expand, with the most striking feature being the Art Deco tower, protected as a monument, witness to the vertical brewing process that took place there for years.

B&R and LIFE will largely preserve the existing structures of +/- 12,000 square meters and add a number of new volumes as part of the redevelopment of the site into a mixed-use inner-city project with a very diverse residential program, co-living, student housing and community functions in the most unique parts of the site, keeping them accessible to the public in the long term. In this way, identity and social and environmental sustainability take center stage, ensuring the future of this iconic site.

In the coming weeks, the developers will launch a competition to choose the design team, led by an experienced team from the BMA (Brussels Master Builder).