Guest contribution by Shahram Agaajani for Paperjam on housing and Luxembourg’s territorial development
2 min read
For years, the debate around housing in Luxembourg has been driven by urgency: rising prices, lengthy procedures and a shortage of available land have all been used as arguments for building more and building faster. In his guest contribution for Paperjam, Metaform founder and architect Shahram Agaajani argues that the discussion needs to look beyond the immediate housing crisis and consider a broader question: how should Luxembourg develop its territory in the long term?
From housing to territory
The recently announced territorial cooperation agreements mark an important step towards greater coordination between stakeholders and across administrative boundaries. But for Shahram, coordination alone is not enough. It should become the starting point for a genuine territorial strategy, one that considers where development should take place and why.
Rather than developing sites simply because they are available or suitable for construction, he calls for more deliberate choices about where to develop, where to preserve and what should remain untouched.
Looking beyond the next crisis
This also means considering the long-term consequences of territorial development. New peripheral neighbourhoods require roads, networks and public facilities, as well as the resources needed to maintain them. For Shahram, these costs need to be considered alongside the immediate need for housing.
The contribution ultimately looks towards a longer-term vision for Luxembourg, including the ambition of imagining the country in 2050. The challenge, as Shahram argues, is to make this perspective a guiding principle for the decisions being taken today.
Photo © Paperjam: Guy Wolff/archive