Seven classes are housed in an annexe on Sauerwiss, with workshops for vocational training even further away in Ingeldorf. The new building has been eagerly awaited for nearly twenty years now, says the director of the Nordstad Lycée, Francisca Rocha.
The 7 hectare site for the new building is in Erpeldange, between the Laduno site and the Alzheimer home. The bill for the 157 million Euro project was approved a year ago. The new construction is set to accommodate up to 1,200 students, with a pool, sports hall and a cafeteria on site.
But the government doesn’t own the site yet. Claude Gleis, mayor of Erpeldange, hopes the current owners will get a fair deal:
“The financing law cites public utility, which is a first for a school. This means they could expropriate the site. That’s an extraordinary measure.”
The owners are expected to receive a letter in the near future, offering them a fair price for the site. The Ministry for Finance confirmed this. The site chosen would be ideal for its public transport links.
To relieve pressure in the interim, it was decided to build an interim school for around 450 students on a site currently owned by the council. This could then be repurposed as a primary school once the big building is finished. But setting a clear timeline is tricky, says Gleis. It would have to be built fast to even be worth it.
And even then, it will not solve all of the school’s current problems, says director Francisca Rocha. Only the big school campus will give them enough room to fully expand their offer.
In the meantime, the kids and staff of the Nordstad Lycée will be expected to make do with interim solutions for a few more years.
