2015-03-11 – The Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region and the PSA Group, which owns the Citroën building on Place de l’Yser, have announced at MIPIM in Cannes that they have reached agreement on the purchase of the iconic building by the Region and the maintenance of the group’s commercial activity at the TACT site in the Canal Area.
‘After several months of discussion with the PSA Group, which I had informed of the Region’s desire to acquire the whole site, I can now confirm that the choice of location for the new Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art has fallen on the Citroën building at Place de l’Yser, 1000 Brussels,’ announced the Minister-President late this afternoon. At the time of taking office as Minister-President in May 2013, he had announced his determination that Brussels should have a new Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. The Vervoort II Government subsequently backed the decision to locate this important facility in the Canal Area and included it in the July 2014 Government Accord.
The Minister-President added: ‘The establishment of a museum of this size will serve as a lever for the revitalisation of this area and help re-establish links between the two banks of the Canal. The museum will also further boost Brussels’ position as a tourist destination, given that it should attract more than 500,000 visitors a year.’
The talks held with the PSA Group over the last few months have led to progress in the acquisition of the ‘Yser’ site, which will accommodate both this major cultural facility and a residential real estate project. The discussions also focused on keeping the PSA Group’s commercial activities in Brussels, specifically at the TACT site, which is owned by the government and located in the same catchment area. The next step is to formalise this agreement in Brussels before the summer.
‘Thanks to the progress that has been made, the Region can now launch a study to plan the restructuring of the site and initiate the process of creating the new Museum, both as a legal structure and in terms of exhibits,’ the Minister-President noted with satisfaction.
