Striking a balance between jobs and housing will remain a key challenge for the Grand Duchy’s capital, attendees heard during an architecture conference this week.
From left: Vincent Bechet, Christine Muller, François Bausch, Markus Hesse and Lydie Polfer participate in the “Luxembourg, ville tentaculaire?” (Luxembourg, a sprawling city?) roundtable on 11 October 2016, which was moderated by Jean-Michel Gaudron of Paperjam and Céline Coubray of Archiduc magazineThe Paperjam Club’s “Luxembourg, ville tentaculaire?” (Luxembourg, a sprawling city?) roundtable, held 11 October 2016 at the International School of Luxembourg in HollerichFrançoise Bruck, Sala Makumbundu and Lisi Teisen during the Paperjam Club’s “Luxembourg, ville tentaculaire?” (Luxembourg, a sprawling city?) roundtable on 11 October 2016 in HollerichSven ReinLuc Biever (on right)Irina Chireu and Elena LaluezaStéphane Gutfrind and Roby EischenJérôme KrierLuc Wagner, Jean Kayser, Jacques Wolter and Alex HornungMarc Lemmer, Paul Fabeck and Claude MullerOlivier Bastin and Vincent BechetFrançoise Bruck and Paul FabeckDidi Liu and Ugur ErogluFrançois Bausch and Mike Koedinger (the publisher of Archiduc, Delano and Paperjam)Mélanie Juredieu and Dominique Lo SardoDenis Lecanu and Delano’s Aaron GrunwaldBenjamin Champenois and Florence Thibaut de Maisières interview Vincent Bechet for the Paperjam websiteThe Paperjam Club’s “Luxembourg, ville tentaculaire?” (Luxembourg, a sprawling city?) roundtable, held 11 October 2016 at the International School of Luxembourg in HollerichMarkus Hesse, Lydie Polfer and François Bausch (standing, from left) moments before being called on stageVincent Ruck of the Paperjam Club and Céline Coubray of Archiduc magazine making introductionsMobility is one of the biggest challenges of economic development, Luxembourg City’s mayor, Lydie Polfer, said on Tuesday. Every morning, more than 120,000 people come to work in the city, she said. “No hospital, no bank would work without them.”Jean-Michel Gaudron, Lydie Polfer and Céline Coubray listen to a response by Markus HesseLuxembourg’s infrastructure minister, François Bausch, said during the conference that he was frustrated when people asked him “just about the tram” because “it’s not just a tram that we are building”. He cited new train stations being built in Hollerich and Pfaffenthal, as well as new and expanded park and ride locations, as being part of the increased mobility package.Luxembourg City’s parks are full and you can’t enjoy walking in them at night, which was not the case ten years ago, the architect Christine Muller said at the Paperjam Club roundtable. She argued that the capital’s new PAG development plan is a chance to change that.François Baush, Markus Hesse and Lydie Polfer listen to Vincent Bechet speakLSAP MPs Marc Angel (front row, left) and Franz Fayot (second from left)Some building permits are still active that have been issued prior to the new “Plan d’aménagement general” being finalised, which “could create conflicts” with the capital’s new master development plan, Vincent Bechet of Luxreal observed during the Paperjam Club-Archiduc roundtable on 11 October 2016.With continued economic growth, Markus Hesse of the University of Luxembourg asked on Tuesday, will more space that opens up for development go towards offices than housing?An audience member poses a question during the Paperjam Club’s “Luxembourg, ville tentaculaire?” (Luxembourg, a sprawling city?) roundtable on 11 October 2016Christine Muller and François BauschMyriam Baur of MediabatA DJ takes a picture of the crowd during the networking cocktail at the Paperjam Club architecture and urban planning roundtable held at the International School of Luxembourg on TuesdayA copy of the Winter 2016 edition of Archiduc magazine, which was released at the Paperjam Club roundtable on 11 October 2016
Photo: Maison Moderne
At the same time, panellists said the supply of constructible land within Luxembourg City was sufficient for the medium term, but more needs to be done to promote affordable housing.
The comments came during the “Luxembourg, ville tentaculaire?” (Luxembourg, a sprawling city?) roundtable organised by the Paperjam Club. The event, held Tuesday evening, marked the release of the Winter 2016 edition of Archiduc magazine. (Both are part of the same company as Delano.)
The conference was also a chance for Lydie Polfer, the DP mayor of Luxembourg City, to defend the capital’s draft PAG (Plan d’aménagement general, or master development plan). The PAG was published over the summer and aims to show how the city will handle an estimated doubling in population in the next two decades. At one point, Polfer claimed that critics of the PAG “hadn’t really read it”.
Urban development plan
According to the mayor, one problem with creating a coherent development plan is that the city cannot use eminent domain rules for private projects (although it can force landowners to sell for public initiatives). “Sometimes we have problems” negotiating a purchase from landowners, explained Polfer. That is what happened to long-stalled plans to include 49 boulevard Royal in Hamilius redevelopment programme.
More broadly, a big historical error, said François Bausch, the Green infrastructure and sustainable development minister, was letting certain areas become too jobs- or too residential- focused. Kirchberg, to cite one such case, is not a great area to live in. “No one wants to take a stroll along avenue [J.F.] Kennedy”, he argued. In other words, there needs to be a better mix of employment and housing in each of the city’s neighbourhoods to boost liveability.
Christine Muller, a partner at Dewey Muller Architectes et Urbanistes, thought cars have had too prominent a place in urban planning. She called for the end of strict formulas fixing the number of parking spots needed to develop a given plot of land. The rest of the structure is simply designed around that quota, she said. (Polfer replied that the number of parking spaces required in the new PAG had already been reduced.)
Is there still enough space?
A frequent suggestion is that Luxembourg City simply is not big enough to handle predicted growth. But Polfer stated in her introductory comments that around 25% of the city’s urban surface was not yet built up, leaving plenty of room for development while preserving green spaces and recreational facilitates.
Responding to a moderator’s question later on, Polfer pointed as a prime example to the proposed plan to move Josy Barthel stadium, the central fire station and the city’s recycling centre from Belair to Kockelscheuer, on the capital’s southern border. Polfer said “knock on wood” the deal would go through, which would then open up a huge swath of land in the heart of the city for housing construction.
Indeed, the city should not expand its borders, Bausch stressed, as there is plenty of potential in other areas, including Gare, Gasperich, Hollerich and Rollingergrund.
At the same time, authorities should keep in mind the success of the Grand Duchy’s financial centre, argued Vincent Bechet, president of the real estate trade group Luxreal and managing director of Inowai Group. Since work on the new PAG began, in 2014, six Chinese banks announced they would set up EU headquarters in Luxembourg, he commented.
Later, Bechet said that investment funds want their address to be in Luxembourg City itself, and not in a suburb, for reasons of prestige. So like it or not, “very soon the question will come up” of needing to expand the city’s territory.
Affordable housing
The economy is doing well and salaries are high in Luxembourg, conceded Markus Hesse, a professor of urban studies at the University of Luxembourg, but what about people seeking homes? Housing prices remain high too, he observed.
Muller cited the example of Vienna, whose city administration facilitates big projects to ensure a steady supply of affordable housing enters the marketplace. “Access to home ownership is my biggest worry” about Luxembourg City’s future, she said. More could be done, in her view, to promote forms of cooperative ownership. Instead of planning a single family house, three homes could be built on the same plot, for instance.
Bausch noted that, prior to the DP-LSAP-Green coalition government which took office in 2013, state-owned land destined for housing development was auctioned off at market prices. His ministry has started experimenting with selling land at 30%-40% below market rates, which he hopes will moderate the cost of housing somewhat. Bausch said: “even if prices remain high, perhaps they can be stabilised” instead of continually rising.
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