Helping create a new city centre

The ambitious project to redevelop the Amphitheatre district in Metz will raise the bar in town planning, providing high-quality architecture, sustainable development and a mix of services and cultural facilities. Plans stretch over 25 hectares, extending the heart of the city, with the new Pompidou centre as a centrepiece of the new development. (Designed by Shigeru Ban and Jean de Gastines, the centre will be the first remote branch of Paris’ high-profile museum of modern art.) With a projected 300,000 visitors a year, the new Pompidou centre will provide the symbolic cornerstone of a district blending 20,000 sq.m of offices, 20,000 sq.m of housing units and 33,000 sq.m of shops on the edge of a 20-hectare park. Scheduled for completion towards 2011, the three blocks will form the basis of a project that will eventually span 350,000 sq.m of land 1km in length.
The project will be managed by architectural firm Nicolas Michelin & Associates.

By 2015, the Amphitheatre district will comprise around 260,000 sq.m of offices, shops, facilities and housing units, representing a total investment of €500 million.

Metz Amphitheatre: key figures

• 50 hectares under development (25ha in the western region)
• A total of 260,000 sq.m of shops, offices and housing units
• Start date: 2006
• Foncière des Régions’ investment: €40 million

For more information, visit www.centrepompidou-metz.fr

Foncière des Régions involved in developing symbolic Metz district

Three initial real-estate development operations (A2, B2 and B3) will pave the way for subsequent development of the Metz district.
The three blocks have been contracted to a group of investors and property developers comprising Foncière des Régions (offices), ING RED, Apsys (shops), Groupe Lazard, Eiffage, Nexity and Batigère (housing).

Architect Jean-Paul Viguier was appointed to coordinate the various projects along with seven other architects who will participate in a workshop to provide additional project management in order to enhance the architectural diversity and style of the city’s new district. The various units will be built on the basis of mixed functional and social use to foster a real district identity with a focus on a user-friendly approach. Landscaping, shops and services will be spread throughout the area.

A 700-space car park is already being built next to the future Amphitheatre district. Managed by Urbis Park (a subsidiary of Parcs GFR, Foncière des Régions), the new facility is scheduled to open in late 2008.

Metz Amphitheatre: key figures

• 13,000 sq.m of offices
• Start date: mid-2009
• Scheduled completion: 2012
• Foncière des Régions’ investment: €40 million.