During the first workshop organised by the CIPU office in 2023 and held on the 27th of June, the participants delved into the concept of multifunctionality in the city, focusing on different scales (building/parcel, district, city). They had the opportunity to explore various planning examples and engage in discussions about the obstacles, potentials, and instruments associated with multifunctional urban use.  

Copyright: Melt Studio, 2023

The day started off with an informative guided tour of the hosting location, the 1535° Creative Hub in the city of Differdange. The location symbolises creativity and innovation in Luxembourg. Established in 2013 by the city of Differdange, the Creative Hub got named after the melting temperature of iron at 1535°C, paying homage to the industrial heritage of the site and the whole city. Today it hosts creative and cultural start-ups, small- and medium-sized enterprises, artists, a co-working space as well as e.g. rentable music studios. More than just the physical space, the 1535° Creative Hub follows a community-driven approach, facilitating collaboration and sharing of expertise among its members. It functions as an open platform fostering synergies and networking, connecting actors from the cultural and creative industry and creating an open-minded environment for the sector.

Copyright: Melt Studio, 2023

After discovering the site, the workshop participants received input on functional mix in urban areas and its current relevance in Luxembourg. As a cross-cutting topic in the Master Programme for Spatial Planning 2023 (Programme Directeur de l’Amenagement du Territoire), it is primarily addressed under the objective of reducing soil artificialisation. In addition to that, the topic is considered under the objective of concentrating of different functions through e.g. creating Centres of development and attraction (Centres de développement et d’attraction). Furthermore, two examples developed during the Luxembourg in Transition Process (LiT) were presented, i. e. the densification strategy for the cross-border town Esch-sur-Alzette (LU) and Audun-le-Tiche (FR) as well as the plan for the commercial area Foetz to be transformed into a mixed-use zone. The local input was complemented with several examples from international multifunctional planning processes form Paris, Bern, Linz, Hamburg, Brussels and Anderlecht.

Copyright: Melt Studio, 2023

Finally, the participants delved into discussions on multifunctionality in urban spaces. The focus was on exploring the potential of integrating multiple functions within city structures on different scales (building/parcel, district, city). Through interactive sessions and planning examples, the workshop shed light on the obstacles, potentials, and instruments associated with multifunctional use in various contexts.

Working in groups, the participants explored multifunctionality in three key areas: commerce and services, production and manufacturing, and the creative sector and culture. These discussions considered the different existing scales, including the city, districts, and individual plots. The fourth group addressed the multifunctional use of housing in combination with schools, shopping centres, and industrial sites. These group sessions provided valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities associated with integrating different functions within urban structures. The results were then presented and discussed in plenum. The results of the discussions will be available on the CIPU Website soon.

Copyright: Melt Studio, 2023

By examining multifunctionality at different scales, the workshop encouraged innovative approaches to urban planning and development. The participants considered the potential of multifunctional spaces to (re-)vitalise communities, optimise resource utilisation, and promote sustainable development. The workshop held within the CIPU framework offered a platform for collaboration and knowledge sharing, bringing together diverse perspectives from local and regional/national stakeholders as well as from thematic experts. It highlighted the importance of considering multifunctionality as a crucial aspect of contemporary city planning as well as which challenges need to be addressed by already existing and potential instruments.

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Last Friday, the online conference “The territorial impacts of the health crisis linked to COVID-19″ within the framework of the urban-architectural and landscape consultation “Luxembourg in transition” was held. The high-level conference was organised by the National Information Unit for Urban Policy (CIPU) in cooperation with the Order of Architects and Consulting Engineers (OAI) and the Luxembourg Ministry of Energy and Spatial Planning.

During the afternoon, experts and stakeholders presented and debated territorial consequences of the pandemic on Luxembourg:

  • How will remote working develop?
  • What does the pandemic show in terms of resilience of Luxembourg and the Greater Region as a whole?
  • What does the pandemic signify for the many cross-border relations between Luxembourg and its surroundings?
  • What social consequences are to be expected and what’s the impact of the pandemic on the societal cohesion within the country?
  • ….

Many more questions were addressed from various different angles, be it the national ministry, from the point of view of Luxembourg municipalities, the advisory social council, from planners and architects and more. A recording of the conference with an English translation has been made available here:

The discussion quick came to the conclusion that increased occurrence of remote working is only one of the many consequences of the pandemic. The pandemic has impacted far more elements in Luxembourg: transport and mobility, public finance and social cohesion, just to name a few. Additionally, the border closures have also strongly impacted the perception of national borders of Luxembourg residents.

All these changes result in behavioral adaptations of persons living and working in the country. Not all of these changes will likely disappear after the pandemic: the booming of online shops and the consequences for inner city commerce, the increased shift towards remote working post-COVID and more will potentially stay. Legislative adjustments pave the way to more lasting changes, for example the adapted double-taxation agreements between Luxembourg and the neighbouring country, allowing for extended periods of home office from a foreign country.

Such long-term changes will also manifest in territorial consequences, be it in a changing mobility behaviour, decentralisation of workplaces or a stronger focus on family and relatives. And also future recovery measures will have, depending on their design, territorially different impacts across Luxembourg and the Greater Region.

Word cloud on the significance of topics for territorial development post-COVID

In conclusion, the key-note speakers and attendees of the conference highlighted that the pandemic will likely increases social and economic inequalities. This can be observed at different scales, both within the country and between Luxembourg and its neighbours. Depending on the design of recovery measures, these inequalities can either be reinforced or softened.

Post-COVID recovery measures can thus have great leverage: if conceived intelligently, policy measures can contribute to induce long-expected changes to the way we live and work. In this regard, the pandemic does not only present a challenge but also an opportunity.

For example for combatting the climate crisis, our established societal systems and the way we live and work needs to undergo structural changes. To reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to the changing climate, we need to act more in line with sustainability objectives, which has long been advocated. The pandemic has shown that once the right incentives are in sight, societies can swiftly adjust, and they are also capable to recover from external shocks.

However, there’s no blueprint on how to master the transition. Knowing that measures have different impacts at local, national and cross-border level, policy-makers need to test policies and embrace for some decisions a ‘trial and error’ approach. One way to reduce uncertainty is to build policies more strongly on local knowledge through participation processes.

The upcoming years will allow to assess the success of Luxembourg and European measures to combat the impact of the pandemic. They will also show which of the changes have survived and also what lessons we have drawn from the current situation.

In order to provide an overview on the numerous territorial impacts, CIPU drafted an input paper during December 2020 as preparation for the conference (in French). The input paper can be downloaded here.