By Marine Strauss
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Work could finally begin on renovating the outside of Brussels landmark the Palais de Justice – but only after the scaffolding that has cloaked the courthouse since 1987 gets another full safety check.
The scaffolding has become as much part of the Belgian capital’s landscape as the domed building itself and has already been changed twice after it rusted during the delays in the renovations caused by cash shortages and stability concerns.
Once 200 days of inspections on the metal skeleton are complete, then it could be full steam ahead on the long-awaited project.
“We are starting the first phase of the work after 40 years asleep,” Mathieu Michel, secretary of state for administrative simplification and building management, told Belgian newspaper L’Echo.
The courthouse, designed by architect Joseph Poelaert and built between 1866 and 1883, was at the time the largest building constructed in Europe, larger than St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, according to the institution that manages state buildings, known as Regie des Batiments.
It was partly destroyed in September 1944 when German soldiers set the dome on fire.
The renovation of the outside of the building is due to cost 100 million euros ($120 million) and is due to end in 2030, Michel said.
Another 100 million euros would be needed for renovating the 81,000 square meters inside building, which Belgium hopes to complete by 2040.
($1 = 0.8398 euros)
(Reporting by Marine Strauss @StraussMarine; Editing by Jan Strupczewski and Alison Williams)
