Development of a prospective vision for the revitalization of Neuchâtel’s city center.
This research work starts from the observation of the paradoxical situation that is experiencing today the center of many medium-sized cities. The latter are indeed centralities for vast urban territories and simultaneously sectors suffering from a certain lack of dynamism. The research identifies three major strategies for revitalizing city centers: The arrival of prestigious equipment or significant socio-cultural activities, the increase in the supply of dwellings in strategic places, and the redevelopment of public spaces accompanying fostering soft mobility.
Approaching this theme in a broad sense and then taking the city of Neuchâtel as a case study, the approach includes the development of a prospective vision for the city center. It is built around a backbone capable of enhancing emerging polarities and to structure a dense network of new interconnections. As a result of a collaborative effort with Cobaty, a publication entitled “Intensités urbaines” provides a synthesis of the main theoretical and projectual results of this research.
Project Partners
Laboratory of architecture and sustainable technologies (LAST)
Research Team LAST
Prof. Emmanuel Rey, Dr. Sophie Lufkin, Adélie Aeberhard
Funding
Cobaty International | Neuchâtel, Fédération internationale de la Construction, de l’Urbanisme et de l’Environnement
Book
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INTENSITES URBAINES Emmanuel Rey EPFL | Laboratory of architecture and sustainable technologies (LAST) Lausanne, 2017 |