© Domingos Oliveira
Belval was once at the core of Luxembourg's steel industry and a place where generations of locals earned their livelihoods. For the past 20 years, a completely new residential area has been under construction at the historic location.
Together with the two smokestacks, the rimstone gives visitors an idea of what this place might have been like back when the blast furnaces were still in use. This part of Luxembourg's history definitively came to an end in July 1997, and after the Rockhal (2005) and the first flats (2008), construction work will begin once more around the "Square Mile".
According to Marie-Josée Vidal, President of the development company Agora, one of the project's main goals is to preserve the industrial character of the site and use it as a canvas to create a place where people can come together. Vidal explains that the coronavirus crisis has shown that especially in densely populated areas, such as Belval, it is very important to have open spaces.
Currently, construction work at Belval's "Quartier Sud" is in its final phases and a new neighbourhood is also planned at Square Mile. At the moment, Belval has 3,500 residents, but in the future, up to 7,000 residents will be able to live there. The area is also frequented by about 6,000 students and approximately 10,000 employees.
Back in 2003, the first roads were constructed in Belval. According to the current schedule, all construction work is expected to be finished by 2027.
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