Discussions underway for new International Building Exhibition in Esch-Belval

Luxembourg's Department of Spatial Planning has announced the launch of the preparatory mission for a new International Building Exhibition, the IBA Alzette Belval (Internationale Bauausstellung), in Esch-Belval.

The preparatory mission for the potential IBA Alzette Belval, a joint operation of cross-border interest, was officially launched yesterday on the University of Luxembourg's Belval campus in the presence of all the partners, including Luxembourg's Minister of Spatial Planning, Claude Turmes, and Housing Minister Henri Kox.

The IBA is an internationally recognised tool developed in Germany, which reveals creative and innovative concepts in the fields of architecture, town planning or territorial development / spatial planning. It offers a form of organisation and project management created in response to specific territorial challenges, without replacing existing structures and skills.

IBA Alzette Belval

As the leader of the project, the European grouping of territorial cooperation, GECT Alzette Belval, will act with the financial support of France's Grand Est region and the Ministry of Ecological and Solidarity Transition, as well as that of Luxembourg's Ministry of Energy and Spatial Planning and Ministry of Housing. In addition, operational partnerships are planned with the University of Luxembourg, the Luxembourg Center for Architecture (LUCA) and the Etablissement public d'aménagement d'Alzette-Belval (EPA Alzette-Belval).

For the Alzette Belval territory and GECT Alzette Belval, this tool represents an additional and unique means with a view to structuring this cross-border conurbation and integrating both common architectural and urban projects, as well as projects located on either side of the border. These projects will be executed on the basis of clear objectives and a flexible methodology.

In his speech, Minister Turmes welcomed this new stage in Franco-Luxembourg relations, which aims to establish the territory of Alzette Belval on the European stage as a precursor model for cross-border cooperation. IBA Alzette Belval will be a question of developing and carrying out joint projects according to a complementary, sustainable and integrative urban and architectural design on both sides of the border. It will also be a question of meeting the challenges concerning the various transitions underway, namely in the energy, ecology, mobility and digital areas.

Claude Turmes expressed his wish to combine with this mission the dynamism of the quality projects underway in the southern region of the country, such as Esch 2022 (European capital of culture), in order to inject an additional boost into existing cooperation and to jointly reinvent with the citizens the future of this common space. He also stressed that the well-being of citizens, their quality of life and social cohesion must be placed at the heart of the IBA's reflections and actions. Thus, the aim thus will be to give this territory a shared identity and to promote among all the inhabitants a feeling of belonging to a space resolutely turned towards the future.

In this context, Henri Kox stressed in his speech the issue of access to affordable housing for social and regional cohesion. He stated that there social imbalance exists on the territories on both sides of the border which has resulted in a housing shortage in Luxembourg and unequal development. The IBA Alzette Belval is thus considered an opportunity to provide innovative solutions to these issues, by experimenting with new forms of housing and redefining public space while taking into account the diverse lifestyles of modern families. At the same time, great importance will be placed on respecting sustainable, balanced and resilient development.

In addition, Henri Kox noted three essential issues which, from the point of view of housing, will have to be addressed by the IBA Alzette Belval: the creation of a significant proportion of affordable housing in newly created neighbourhoods, the mobilisation of potential land and the improvement of the quality of life in neighbourhoods through adapted urban planning. He recalled that the coordination of cross-border regulatory systems will pose a major challenge for the success of the project and so collaboration of all local, regional and state actors will be necessary to achieve this.

The preparatory mission will extend over two years and will study the feasibility of an IBA Alzette Belval for the period 2022-32.