The long-awaited new headquarters of the Brussels Capital-Ixelles police zone will not be ready in 2025 but only in 2028. The cost increases from the estimated 150 to 180 million euros to 226 million euros. “The police have been waiting far too long for new, high-performance infrastructure in Brussels,” says Mathias Vanden Borre (N-VA), who asked Mayor Philippe Close (PS) about this at Monday’s city council.
The plans for the new headquarters, which will house the administrative services of the Brussels Capital-Ixelles police, date from 2015. The estimated costs at the time were estimated at 150 to 180 million euros. The delivery date: 2024. The asbestos removal started later than planned and no project developer was found. In 2021 it was said that the building would not be completed until 2025 at the earliest.
But that now appears to be at the end of 2028, with a price tag of 226 million euros.
Mayor Close attributes the fact that costs have risen so much to inflation and the increase in the index, which made both building materials and labor more expensive. The building permit was only applied for last week. “If the original timing had been respected, it would have saved taxpayers and our police a lot of money,” Vanden Borre said.
The City of Brussels will pay 47 million euros. The remainder, amounting to 179 million euros, is financed through a Design-Build, Finance and Maintain contract, in which the contractor is responsible for the design, construction, financing and maintenance. That amount is paid to the contractor in instalments.
Even though it is “very late”, Vanden Borre is happy that things are now moving forward. “It is urgently needed, if you look at the commissariat on the Kolenmarkt, where the administrative services are now located. That building is completely outdated, it is a journey in time.”
Nevertheless, Vanden Borre would have preferred that the new headquarters serve all police zones and services in Brussels. “The fragmentation in Brussels must stop and a new modern chief commissioner would provide an additional guarantee of an efficient security policy.”
This article is originally published on bruzz.be
