Territories of former large industrial plants constitute an equally large problem for cities where they are located. A fall of a factory entails not only the occurrence of the phenomenon of unemployment, but also the reduction of the tax receipts to the municipal budget. Cases which are particularly difficult to deal with are declining steelworks, as due to their sizes and specificity of the production technology they had a strong impact on the planning form of the city and its socioeconomic structure. The question of the future of post-steelworks areas is an issue of strategic importance for municipal authorities as well as for central administration. This paper describes the case of the steelworks in Belval. After its closure, authorities of Luxembourg along with private entities undertook a series of measures allowing to transform this brownfield site into a dynamically developing urban centre. The revitalisation process, conducted since the end of the 20th century, led to the occurrence of one of the most interesting transformations of post-industrial areas in Europe, the new growth axis of which is the knowledge-based development. The decision of the central administration to transfer the University of Luxembourg from the capital to the degraded areas of the former steelworks constitutes an answer to the demographic and economic problems of the entire country, recognising diversification of important services and public structures as a factor which may contribute to more sustainable development of the country by means of activation of local centres.
 

Tereny dawnych wielkich zakładów przemysłowych stanowią równie wielki problem miast, w których się znajdują. Upadek zakładu wiąże się nie tylko z powstaniem zjawiska bezrobocia, ale także zmniejszeniem wpływów z podatków do miejskiego budżetu. Szczególnie trudnymi przypadkami są upadające huty stali, gdyż z powodu swego rozmiaru i specyfiki technologii produkcji, silnie wpływały na formę planistyczną miasta oraz jego strukturę społeczno-gospodarczą. Kwestia przyszłości terenów pohutniczych jest zagadnieniem strategicznym zarówno dla władz miast jak i państw. W niniejszym artykule opisany został przypadek huty stali w Belval. Po zamknięciu zakładu władze Luksemburga podjęły wraz z prywatnymi podmiotami szereg działań pozwalających przekształcić teren brownfield w dynamicznie rozwijający się ośrodek miejski. Proces rewitalizacji, prowadzony od końca XX wieku, doprowadził do powstania jednej z najciekawszych transformacji obszarów poprzemysłowych w Europie, której nową osią wzrostu jest rozwój oparty na wiedzy. Decyzja władz centralnych o przeniesieniu ze stolicy Uniwersytetu Luksemburskiego na zdegradowane tereny pohutnicze jest odpowiedzią na ogólnokrajowe problemy demograficzne i gospodarcze, uznając, iż dywersyfikacja ważnych usług i struktur publicznych może przyczynić się do bardziej zrównoważonego rozwoju kraju przez pobudzenie lokalnych ośrodków.

Concept of Smart City as the Search of Contemporary Meaning of Urbanity upon the Example of the Revitalisation of the Grounds of Former Belval Steelworks in Luxembourg

Abstract

Territories of former large industrial plants constitute an equally large problem for cities where they are located. A fall of a factory entails not only the occurrence of the phenomenon of unemployment, but also the reduction of the tax receipts to the municipal budget. Cases which are particularly difficult to deal with are declining steelworks, as due to their sizes and specificity of the production technology they had a strong impact on the planning form of the city and its socioeconomic structure. The question of the future of post-steelworks areas is an issue of strategic importance for municipal authorities as well as for central administration. This paper describes the case of the steelworks in Belval. After its closure, authorities of Luxembourg along with private entities undertook a series of measures allowing to transform this brownfield site into a dynamically developing urban centre. The revitalisation process, conducted since the end of the 20th century, led to the occurrence of one of the most interesting transformations of post-industrial areas in Europe, the new growth axis of which is the knowledge-based development. The decision of the central administration to transfer the University of Luxembourg from the capital to the degraded areas of the former steelworks constitutes an answer to the demographic and economic problems of the entire country, recognising diversification of important services and public structures as a factor which may contribute to more sustainable development of the country by means of activation of local centres.