Zuidpark in Antwerp Wins 2026 European Prize for Urban Public Space

Zuidpark, the Antwerp park designed by Georges Descombes with Tractebel and atelier adr, has won the European Prize for Urban Public Space 2026, awarded by a jury chaired by Eva Prats and announced at the CCCB – Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona. The project converted a large asphalt parking lot into a free public park. The site was originally occupied by the Gedempte Zuiderdokken commercial docks, built in the 19th century and filled in during the 1960s to create a surface parking area. The design removed the asphalt, used the geometry of the three former basins as its organizing principle, and introduced a central meadow, a linear water garden, areas for rest, sport and urban cultivation, and three new squares linked to adjacent streets. Removal of the tarmac, new planting and a system for collecting, filtering and reusing rainwater have allowed residents to reclaim the space since its inauguration in 2024. The 2026 edition drew 381 entries, a record for the prize, which was established in 2000. CCCB director Judith Carrera described the award as an archive of creative proposals that solve problems, prove effective in practice and transform cities. Descombes said on stage that the team could have done better and argued that good projects require risk. A special mention went to Round About Baths, a temporary work by Leopold Banchini realized in Logroño in 2025 within the Concéntrico festival.