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ICC Permanent Premises is a project that has as its main goal the construction of the permanent headquarters of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
At present, the ICC is housed in interim premises in The Hague provided by the host state of The Netherlands.
As a permanent judicial institution, the ICC requires functional permanent premises to enable the Court to execute its duties effectively and to reflect the significance of the ICC in the fight against impunity for crimes of concern to the international community. The Assembly of States Parties decided that the ICC should be provided with newly built permanent premises, and the Permanent Premises Project is well underway: Construction is scheduled to start in the Autumn of 2012 and to be completed towards the end of 2015, when the premises will be ready for use.
The Permanent Premises Project's goal [1] is to create the optimum balance between quality, functionality and cost, providing the States Parties who established and continue to support the ICC with the best possible long term value for money.
The host state will make the construction site available free of charge and has provided a loan to finance the construction. In addition, the host state organised and financed the architectural design competition which started at the end of 2008.
Three architects were chosen by an international jury from a total of 171 applicants to enter into further negotiations. The Danish firm schmidt hammer lassen were ultimately selected to design the new premises since its design met all the ICC criteria, such as design quality, sustainability, functionality and costs[2].
The new Court will be situated between the natural rolling dunes landscape and the edge of The Hague on the site of the Alexanderkazerne (Alexander Barracks) on the van Alkemadelaan/Oude Waalsdorperweg. The new site is an ideal location since it is situated close to the detention centre and to major roads, and it is part of the International Zone of The Hague [3] which also contains the Peace Palace, Europol, ICTY, OPCW and The Hague World Forum.