12 Jun 2018
Luxembourg skatepark opens in shadow of UNESCO-listed fortress
BY Kim Megson
One of Europe’s largest and most dramatic skateparks has been built in Luxembourg, in the shadow of a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The multi-level park has been built beneath the stony Fortifications of Vauban in the Peitruss Valley, which separates Luxembourg's Old and New Towns.
French studio Constructo Skatepark Architecture, based in Marseille, worked with members of the local skateboarding community to create a facility suitable for their needs and in keeping with the historic surrounds.
The design of the park reinterprets the geometric design of the Vauban fortress, with numerous benches and curbs. Stone walls and stone cladding on the benches further enhance the connection between the old and the new. Cream, brown and grey colours are used for the patchwork of concrete slabs to reflect the different shades in the historic fortified walls above.
With a total surface of 2,750sq m, the site includes bowls and domes of different sizes and a street plaza. It has been designed for all urban sports, including rollerblading and BMX, and all levels of practice. The architects also created water fountains, public toilets, bicycle parking, and 12 light masts, which allow the site to be used safely at night.
Other innovative skating facilities to have opened recently include a glow-in-the-dark park in Liverpool, an art-covered skate zone in an abandoned Spanish church and within an old Victorian bathing house beneath the seafront in Hastings.
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