Immobel - Perspectives - Friche

Immobel has real expertise in investing in urban wastelands and turning them into vibrant, people-filled, comfortable living spaces. Three of the Group’s projects in particular provide illustrations of this know-how.

 

Polvermillen: between city and nature in Luxembourg

The best of both worlds is the idea behind this project, which is located in a verdant setting and also benefits from close proximity to the urban centre. On a former industrial site, composed of abandoned buildings and warehouses, Immobel is injecting new life into an existing neighbourhood in the lower part of Luxembourg city, a 10-minute walk from the lift leading to the city centre. With the aim of conserving part of its historical heritage, the Group is showcasing certain buildings, for example by transforming warehouses into lofts and completely decontaminating the site, in advance of developing apartment residences, as well as triplex or fourplex units. A wide variety of housing types with more than 200 units in total.

Immobel - Perspectives - Friche
Aurélie Frédureau, Developer for Immobel Luxembourg

Aurélie Frédureau, Developer for Immobel Luxembourg, explains the project’s advantages: “In order to provide a real quality of life, we have planned high-quality, private outdoor spaces for the majority of housing units. Two office buildings for professionals also enhance the vibrancy of the project, by adding diversity. The site will also be open to the rest of the neighbourhood thanks to the creation of a cycle path that will offer a shortcut to the surrounding forest or to the city centre. Real everyday comfort thanks to a verdant setting in the heart of the city!”

Key West: a new buzz for the Canal in Brussels

This sustainable redevelopment promises to turn a highly industrial area of former retail premises and production buildings into a new, open and lively neighbourhood. Immobel and its partner have decided to pool their expertise to turn this abandoned wasteland into a vibrant block at the head of the Biestebroeck basin. In addition to housing, the aim of the project is to create an economic centre and inject more diversity into the community. More than 500 housing units will be spread across buildings of varying scales, supplemented by offices, a crèche as well as shops and an interior garden.

Immobel - Perspectives - Friche

“The programme is particularly focused on the needs of the neighbourhood, most notably in terms of retail premises, with pedestrianized public areas accessible to local residents. A large square will be able to accommodate urban markets and events,” explains Rob Ragoen, developer of the project. “It consists of a genuine repurposing of the area into a neighbourhood accessible to residents, an active destination intended to open onto the banks of the Canal and restore residents’ access to the water.”

Aubervilliers: a liveable neighbourhood on Paris’ doorstep

Within the joint development zone of the “Fort d’Aubervilliers” eco-neighbourhood, a former fortification in Paris, built in the late 1930s and having undergone many changes of use, the project provides for the transformation of a 36-hectare urban wasteland into a mixed neighbourhood, open to the city and respectful of the site’s assets. Immobel is contributing to this redevelopment, which will showcase the contemporary architecture.

Immobel - Perspectives - Friche

“The transformation of this urban wasteland will create a neighbourhood where human and plant life will coexist and interact,” Mathieu Chamard-Sablier, Director of Real Estate Operations Immobel France. “By locating new public facilities within innovative projects and creating new housing units of varying sizes, we will maintain the historic social mix of this neighbourhood while revitalizing the urban fabric. The abundance and positioning of the public spaces will be key to showcasing the Fort as the centrepiece of the site.”

 

Pre-construction spaces for temporary use

Before the construction phases of its projects, Immobel regularly offers spaces on its sites to support cultural or charitable initiatives, by allowing actors to take advantage of unoccupied spaces while waiting for construction to begin. For example, in Brussels, the Group helped with the setting up of a summer bar within the site of the Key West project. Another example: the Lebeau buildings were also made available to the cast and crew filming a series for the broadcaster RTBF, which was able to use it as a backstage area while shooting in the Sablon neighbourhood.

Immobel - Perspectives - Friche