Lille Metropole, winner of the 1st EUI call !

To address the urban challenges Europe is facing, the European Commission launched the Urban Innovative Actions (UIA), an initiative set up to provide direct support for cities to experiment new solutions . In this framework, the new European Urban Initiative (EUI) launched in 2022 in the pathway of UIA will support cities with innovative actions, capacity and knowledge building, policy development and communication on sustainable urban development with ERDF funds.

On the 22nd June, the Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira, announced the winners during the "New European Bauhaus Awards" ceremony. Among the 99 projectssubmitted, Lille Metropole is proud to be among the 14 selected for its "Time2adapt" proposal !

Lille Metropole teams have been working to develop this innovative project regarding time as a key to adapt the territory to climate change, in link with its Territorial Climate Air Energy Plan (PCAET). It aims to provide the residents  more cool places thanks to a temporal approach. But what does that mean concretly ?

• Make fresh spaces and buildings more accessible to the public by adapting their opening hours (e.g. swimming pools, parks, gardens) or opening them up to other users (e.g. school playgrounds).
• Transform certain spaces into cool spots
• Offer "refreshing" temporary installations

All these actions will be carried out according to the principles of the NEB : inclusive, beautiful, together.

On the €6.2M project budget, €5M will be covered by European subsidies. In addition to Lille Metropole as lead partner, the project partnership includes the cities of Lille and Loos, the regional agency for the improvement of working conditions (ARACT), Cerema, associations (SEED, Groupe A and Sociotopie)

3 European transfer cities will also be integrated in the partnership. The city of Dresden already confirmed its interest and 2 others will be  selected in the coming months.

The project initiation phase will start in September 2023 for a 6 months duration. Its aim will be to organize and prepare the implementation of the project beginning with the cities of Loos and Lille in March 2024. Metropolitans will thus be able to benefit from the first actions as early as summer 2024. The project will last three and a half years. During its final year, successful experiments will be offered to other Lille Metropole municipalities for testing in summer 2026.

Supported by 65 million euros from the European Regional Development Fund, the winning projects will serve as a new generation of New European Bauhaus demonstrators in the fields of circular and carbon-neutral construction and renovation, preservation and transformation of cultural heritage, adaptation and transformation of buildings for affordable housing solutions, and regeneration of urban spaces.

Learn more about the project here (FR)