These live/work Antwerp lofts offer a radical scale for living in the heart of the city

Classrooms have been transformed into a pair of sprawling live/work spaces at this central Antwerp property, with industrial finishes that spotlight their dramatic scale.

The Academy lofts are part of a 2011 adaptive reuse project that converted the defunct 1930s redbrick school into open plan live/work spaces. The units are presently offices for Belgian practice Van Belle-Medina Architects and occupy the second and third floors of The Academy and Stadswaag building.

Wellimmo is selling the Antwerp lofts for €1.37m, earmarking them for conversion into a single, mammoth live/work dwelling, or individually at €695,000 and €675,000.

They clock in at 196 sq m and 179 sq m, and both feature ceilings that rise to 11-feet high. Outdoor space is also available at the second-floor unit – a terrace and storage cellar – though there’s space to add a balcony terrace to the third-floor loft.

Walls of period windows, polished concrete floors and rugged concrete pillars heighten the industrial vibe. Still, thanks to their pristine, shell-like interiors, the building would easily lend itself to adaptation by its new owners for either residential living or a hybrid live/work set-up. See inside the Antwerp properties via the gallery above.

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