The secretaries of state for Urbanism and Economic Transition, Pascal Smet and Barbara Trachte, on Friday handed over the Brussels Terrace Award to Wolf Food Market, located at Rue du Fossé aux Loups in downtown Brussels.
The new prize is meant to reward the best terraces built at parking places. Each month, viewers can send the photo and address of a terrace they like to brusselsterraceaward@urban.brussels. A jury then selects the winning terrace for that month.
The jury is made up of members of the regional public services urban.brussels and hub.brussels, the region’s Chief Architect, representatives of the hospitality industry and observers from the offices of Pascal Smet and Barbara Trachte. Each winner receives an engraved plaque and 500 euros.
The Wolf Food Market, which hosts many international food and craft stalls, is the first recipient of the new award. Its terrace is installed at a spot normally reserved for deliveries.
© Belga
“The Wolf opened a dozen weeks or so before the first lockdown and has 19 restaurants,” the establishment’s director, Laura Cornil, said. “The terrace gave us prospects for survival. It came on 9 June, and we reopened on 10 June. It’s great and it changed the atmosphere.
“People have been taking cocktails here. We also have climbing plants which will one day cover the terrace,” added the director, who hopes the authorisations will be extended beyond October.
The authorities plan to allow the terraces to remain throughout the year and not to limit them to the summer months, according to Pascal Smet. “With the Coronavirus, I am convinced the terraces will play a crucial role in the hospitality industry’s survival, but also for the atmosphere in public spaces, provided they are well integrated into the public space,” he said.
The Brussels Terrace Award was created “to support initiatives that improve the quality of public spaces and can serve as examples to others,” he added.
He did not mention any significant complaints about the installation of the terraces in parking places.
The Brussels Times
