On Wednesday 15 September, the City of Luxembourg presented the concept for the urban development of Place de l’Étoile – a 3-hectare site located in the immediate vicinity of the city centre. The Mayor of Luxembourg city Mrs Lydie Polfer, accompanied by representatives of the State and the developers, unveiled the project concept for the creation of a mixed neighbourhood but also the concept of mobility.
A transport hub
At a press conference on the occasion, Mrs Lydie Polfer together with Mr François Bausch, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Mobility and Public Works joined by Mr Thibault Lauprêtre, managing director of BC Partners, and Mr Marc Giorgetti, manager of Felix Giorgetti Sàrl (the developers). The public representatives unveiled their plans to transform Place de l’Étoile into a mobility hub but also announced the creation of a mixed neighbourhood with housing, offices, shops and services.
Located at the intersection of the route d’Arlon, the rue de Rollingergrund and the boulevard de la Foire, the site currently hosts a transport connection point served by municipal buses, regional buses and the tram line that will join the Place de la Gare towards the end of the year. This connecting function will be upgraded as the new project will turn the site into a principal traffic axis linking the neighbouring municipalities through better transport connections and the extension of the tramway network towards the municipality of Strassen.
Furthermore, the new mobility hub aimed at promoting the development of soft mobility will also host several cycle paths, stations of the vel’OH! rental system, and pedestrian links to other parts of the city.
In order to allow the integration of a shared space with an underground bus station for regional buses, the section of the route d’Arlon located between the boulevard de la Foire and the rue de Rollingergrund will be diverted by a tunnel from the boulevard de the Fair in the direction of New York square to join the route d’Arlon again. This “new” Arlon road will make it possible to direct traffic in a targeted manner leaving more space for the individual on the surface.
The future Place de l’Étoile of Luxembourg will serve and important mobility and housing function. Image: KPF via Luxembourg City
Affordable housing in the heart of Luxembourg
The second main aspect of the project concerns housing, which will cover close to half of the surface area. Thus, of the 102,745 square metres 48,395 will be used for the construction of more than 600 housing units, including low-cost.
Another 8,365 square metres will be used for shops, a fitness centre, a food hall with terraces and interior gardens as well as a 5-screen multiplex cinema. Finally, the area planned for offices is 45,985 m2, or 45% of the total.
What comes next for the Place de l’Étoile is the approval of the respective development plans by the city council which is expected to start in the first quarter of 2021.
Source: TheMayor.EU
