Stoclet family opposes mandatory opening of Stoclet Palace

The Stoclet Palace, on Tervurenlaan in the Brussels municipality of Sint-Pieters-Woluwe, is exceptional in many ways. The building by designer Josef Hoffmann is a UNESCO World Heritage Site: Hoffmann not only designed the building, but also furnished it and designed countless interior and utility objects. It is the only building of the Vienna Secession in Brussels, and one of the few outside Austria tout court. It has also been closed to the public since 2002.

An ordinance from Brussels State Secretary for Urban Planning and Heritage Ans Persoons (Vooruit.brussels) put an end to this this year. The injunction obliges all non-public UNESCO World Heritage sites in the Brussels Region to open their doors at least fifteen days a year. In fact, it only concerns the Stoclet Palace: the other UNESCO World Heritage site in Brussels is publicly accessible.

The Stoclet heirs will now file an appeal before the end of the year. The Stoclet family is urging the Constitutional Court to quash the measure. This is what Bruzz writes and is confirmed by the Constitutional Court.

The appeal against the ordinance opening the Stoclet Palace was filed by the Compagnie Immobilière SAS, the group in which the Stoclet heirs are represented. The judgment of the Constitutional Court is expected to be delivered within a year to a year and a half.

Opponents of the decision argue that the palace will be damaged if it opens its doors to visitors. Any adjustment works to allow groups of visitors are incompatible with the wish of builder Adolphe Stoclet that no changes should be made to the house. The family receives support from groups who argue that the Stoclet Palace was private property and that an owner can do with it as he pleases.

If the Constitutional Court annuls the ordinance, there will be no mandatory opening. If not, the next government should activate them. “We have been trying to have a constructive dialogue with the Stoclet family for months, but this makes it clear once again that they only want to communicate with us through the legal process,” State Secretary Persoons responds to the news. “We are very reasonable and ask that each exceptional UNESCO heritage be opened for a maximum of fifteen days a year, at the expense of the region.”