When people talk about Nordstad, they are usually referring to the planned merger of the municipalities of Bettendorf, Diekirch, Ettelbruck, Erpeldange-sur-Sûre and Scheuren. However, in addition to the political move, work is also being done on specific urban projects. The NEG was founded five years ago to help buy the necessary land, but it is now also becoming active in other areas.
Nordstad is expected to keep on developing and growing, and the NEG was founded five years ago to support this process. Although it does not buy land itself, it acts as a facilitator between various stakeholders. Seven representatives from various ministries and the mayors of Diekirch, Ettelbruck and Erpeldange sit on the board of directors.
Water as a challenge
The central axis between Erpeldange and Diekirch in particular is expected to see a large number of new residents in the coming years. However, the current networks are not designed for this, which is why the NEG calls for the needs of electricity, mobility and wastewater to be anticipated when developing new projects.
Daniel Peters, General Director of the NEG, sees a particular need for action when it comes to water.
“We have a clear flooding problem in this area, which we focussed on in one of our studies. That’s why it’s important that we don’t stand against the water for the time being, but try to live with it.”
Due to the great need for new living space, the country cannot afford not to build in flood zones. This simply means that we must build differently, for example by putting new buildings on stilts.
As far as mobility is concerned, even though the Greens are no longer part of the coalition, the CSV-DP government is sticking to the National Mobility Plan 2035. The train lines are to be moved and run through the Goldknapp in future. The central axis will also be greened at a later date and will only be accessible for public transport and so-called soft mobility.
But there will also be changes in Diekirch.
“We will probably move Diekirch station slightly and extend its platform to accommodate longer trains. In this context, a second platform will also be added to accommodate travellers heading towards Luxembourg City.”
Study on the commercial situation in Nordstad
According to Daniel Peters, the first construction works will be started this summer in the context of remodelling the central axis between Erpeldange and Diekirch.
However, the NEG is also active in other areas. For example, a study was carried out to assess the commercial situation in the northern part of the city.
The aim is to ensure that people can find everything they need within as compact a radius as possible. As is the current case, the hospitality sector is better represented in some municipalities, while clothing shops are perhaps better represented in others. The idea is to ensure that the areas are complementary to each other and not to create a third pole between Diekirch and Ettelbruck.
