Euromediterranee 2

EUROMEDITERRANEE 2

WHAT IS EUROMEDITERRANEE PROJECT ?

Euromediterranée is a urban project which take place in Marseille, in France.

It was started in 1995 by french government, with european financing.

Marseille is a strategic city in France (big harbor city in the mediterranean cost) and the biggest city in the south of France. But there are many social and economic problems. Bringing Marseille as an big european was a « national interest » for french government..

The main objectives were to struggle against urban sprawl with making a « city under the city », develop this dropped area of the city and to respect a sustainable development.

An international competition was organized and it is François Leclerc, architect-urbanist, with his teams (TER office, Rémy Marciano, Jacques Sbriglio and SETEC) who were selected to plan the master plan of the intervention.

The first intervention area was about 310ha in 1995 but it was extended in 2007 about 170ha more in the north. This extension is called « Euromediterranée 2 ». It should be achieved around 2030s. We will focus on this part of the project.

WHAT IS THE CONTEXT ?

 

The districts of the extension areas are districts marked by a big industrial and port economy in the 19^th century. The littoral was full of huge industrial infrastructures, highway and train rails.

But since the industrial economy collapsed, these districts left out and were degraded step by step. The economy didn't renewed and most of industrial building stayed dropped. The districts needed new identity and to reconnect to the city center. Indeed, they are in a strategic areas in metropole heart and close to the transportations and infrastructures (high way, underground, harbor).

HOW TO SOLVE THE HOUSING PROBLEMATIC?

Nowadays there is 3500 inhabitants and a lot of building are dropped or degradated. The project provides to build appartments to get 30 000 inhabitants more after 20 years. The district is now constitued in majority of low social class people. In the past, when a new district was built, most of the poor population had to leave the area because of gentrification. To avoid this this exodus phenomenon, Euromediterranée promove the social mixity with building 4 200 social housings on 14 000 (30%) and 2 100 controled price housings (15%). 1500 housings will also be rehabilitated.

HOW TO GIVE AN URBAN QUALITY ?

 

The district is located on the sea side but it is not accessible. To reach the sea, people have to go 5km in the south. That's the reason of a creation of a new cornice which will cover and hide the the existant high way and rail road.

Others amenagments (larger sidewalk and bicycle ways) will be created to reduce cars in the city.

This district, sometimes called « ghetto » is not well known by citizens because it is excluded of the city. To stop this exclusion phenomenon, public transport will be extended until this area and a new underground terminal station will be created.

The project wants to try to give more life quality with introduce nature in the city. Indeed, Marseille is a city which miss a lot of green areas.

HOW TO PROVIDE A SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT?

One of the main idea in the project about substainable development is the creation of a public park of 14ha in a river side and which will continue an existing park. The problematic was to manage mediterranean climate and risks and care about landscape, pollution and biodiversity but also people manners.

The park will also be the connection between Euromediterranée 1 and Euromediterranée 2 projects and should drive a park network in the city. At the end it will be a green corridor of about 8km.

USE THE NATURAL ENERGY?

The project wants to develop an innovant system of energy with a local and natural element : the sea.

A loop from the sea to the city would produce heat in winter and provide cooling in summer time with an industrial and sustainable system. This system is called « thalassothermy » and could reach the european standarts about sustainable energy and limited the phenomenon of « warm block ».

THE « WITNESS DISTRICT »

A part of the project would be designed as a witness district called "Allar block". It would be 2,4ha used for experiment an innovant example of mediterranean, sustainable and reproducible habitat.

This block will mix programs with 400 housings and 20 000 m2 for offices and public equipments.

Thanks to a partnership with an innovation and sustainable development, the district will get positive energy buildings, water recycling and wastes management.

Marine Pasquini, Lucien Saumet, Marta Tarnowska