Parktoren

With 22 floors, its striking whiteness and its futuristic architecture, the Parktoren is a major landmark on the Antwerp skyline. Together with the MAS river museum and the new Spoor Noord park, it brings a welcome new breath to this recently renovated northern part of Antwerp. But the best is behind the façade, in the intergenerational project that the tower block proposes. The Parktoren contains 240 student studios and 115 serviced apartments, separated by a 11th floor common area with restaurant and fitness center.

The Parktoren incorporates a series of high grade technologies for ventilation, insulation, acoustics, and wind and moisture control. It also makes intelligent use of natural light. It rose into the Antwerp sky with lightning speed, with BESIX building one floor every five days, thanks to the ingenious structural interlocking of floor slabs, precast beams, columns and external walls.

The Parktoren was designed by Studio Farris Architects in collaboration with engineering consultants ELD Partnership. Its elegance and smartly integrated technologies have not escaped the judges for the US Architizer A+ award. In particular they praised its remarkable façade, an immaculate patchwork of mirrorlike windbreakers and layered terraces, creating a play of light and shadow. The building was awarded the Architizer A+ 2015 prize in the category of residential buildings over 16 floors.