Mechelen MALT, reconversion project at the waterfront and railway station.
With the sustainable integration of the heritage building Socaré, this new city quarter will get a very distinct identity. It will be a low-traffic and green living environment for residents and office users, with lots of integrated facilities such as a pub, a restaurant and a co-working area, which are also accessible to the surrounding neighbourhood.
The location at the renovated railway station of Mechelen is an extra asset for both future residents and office workers. This project offers considerable added value for the city of Mechelen, both on an economic and social level.
Key figures masterplan
New life for the former Inofer site
Up to 2013, this 11,000 m² site contained a press shop for non-ferrous metals and before that, a malt-house and a rubber factory (Le Caoutchouc Récupéré).
The site was abandoned when the last company located here went bankrupt. Since that time, it has been subject to challenges such as underutilisation and neglect. The various industrial activities have left their marks in the soil so that the site needs to be remediated before the redevelopment can start.
Architectural quality
Architectural quality is key in this redevelopment project. This reveals itself in the contemporary and sustainable architecture, the high-end landscaping of the open green areas and the tasteful integration of the historical Socaré building.
The overall master plan for the project area has been drawn up by Sculp.IT Architects. The further realisation of the different buildings and functions rests with a team of complementary architects under the supervision of Jaspers-Eyers. For the residential part of the project, we will work together with Sculp.IT Architects. For the office buildings, we are committed to achieve the BREEAM Exellent certification. The renovation of the Socaré building has been entrusted to Callebaut Architects, an established expert in the renovation of heritage buildings.
Visit this historical Socaré building during Open Monuments Day
Integrating heritage
The industrial look & feel of the Socaré building has been preserved as a reference to the site’s history.
The sustainable integration of the Socaré building and its reactivation as an office building not only lends a unique identity to this project but also shows how we can protect valuable relicts of our industrial past by giving heritage an active role in the present.
Low-traffic and green living environment
We work together with the landscape architects of Avant Garden for the design of the open and green space. A free, attractive and pleasant flow of vulnerable road users is central in their design.
The new quarter will have an array of interconnecting foot- and bicycle paths, vertical and horizontal green spaces, green roofs and lots of small lively squares. The revalorisation of the Inofer site will pay a valuable contribution to the renovation of the railway station area. To further improve the integration of this new city quarter in the railway station area, the access road along the Postzegellaan will be lowered to bring it on the same level as the project development area.
A complementary co-operation
Jan De Nul Group joins forces with Codic.
For realising this redevelopment project, the strengths and know-how of PSR (the development division of Jan De Nul Group) in terms of the development and repurposing of complex projects and brownfields on the one hand and of CODIC, expert in office development on the other, are combined.