Meeting of the Municipal Council on 18 June 2018

QUESTION BY ROY REDING

Council member Reding would like to know more about the Coffee-Bike monthly fee. As the amount had been set at €750 per month, he believes it is too expensive for a small business. 

This statement leads him to ask the following questions:

• How was the pricing determined?
• Do you believe that this amount is appropriate for a small business that must work with smaller profit margins?
• Don't you think that amore moderate rate could increase the offering of these mobile businesses, as is the case in other capital cities?

RESPONSE BY SERGE WILMES

Alderman Wilmes emphasised that the College of Aldermen had set guidelines for the operation of food trucks and similar businesses. In this context, public locations needed to be defined and a fee set based on the surface area and the location. With regard to mobile businesses, the City of Luxembourg took inspiration from other cities such as Brussels, in particular. 

On the City's website, a fee schedule is published and there is a link for interested parties to apply. For example, at Place Guillaume II the price is €1.6 per hour and per m², and around Charly's Gare it is €0.8.

One must also bear in mind that traditional businesses often pay very high rents.

With regard to the Coffee-Bike in particular, an interview was conducted between the operator and their lawyer and the representatives of the College of Aldermen. Further to that interview, the City of Luxembourg proposed to enter into an agreement that listed the locations where the Coffee-Bike would be allowed to operate. These locations were chosen so they would not be located in the immediate vicinity of businesses that have a similar offering.

The City also proposed that the operator record on a time sheet the actual amount of time spent at different locations, and that the time sheet be used to calculate the total number of hours at the end of each month. However, the City has not yet heard back from the other party.

Generally speaking, the City supports this type of mobile business, and the College of Aldermen is inclined to review the conditions, if necessary, in the interest of commerce.

QUESTION BY CLAUDIE REYLAND

Considering the importance and success of the work carried out at the Hariko workshop with young – and not-so-young – refugees and non-refugees in areas such as:

• raising awareness of local community values among persons from cultures with other attitudes towards issues such as gender equality, homosexuality, etc.;
• integration through sporting activities (football, jogging, swimming classes, etc.);
• integration through cultural activities (dance, theatre, sewing classes, etc.);
• the organisation of language classes (French, English, Arabic, etc.);
• the organisation of IT classes;
• assistance with administrative and legal issues during the complicated formalities that applicants for international protection must complete;
• collaboration with "OH" (Oppend Haus), which places refugees in family homes (allowing them to leave the refugee centres).

Given the importance of having Hariko located in the City of Luxembourg (and not in another nearby municipality that is more difficult to access), and in light of the fact that Hariko will have to leave its premises located at 1, Dernier Sol, in Bonnevoie, by the end of June this year, i.e. in two months, I submit the following questions to the College of Aldermen:

• Does the City of Luxembourg plan to make other premises available to Hariko at the end of June?
• If not, does the College of Aldermen think that Hariko should stay in the city? And if it does, what steps has the College of Aldermen taken to find an adequate solution to this emergency situation?
• Considering that Hariko's teams are currently working with little financial support and the limited means at their disposal, how does the City of Luxembourg plan to support the initiative so that it can build on its success and fully develop its potential?
• According to an article in the Tageblatt newspaper, is it true that Hariko will be relocated to Esch-sur-Alzette? 

RESPONSE BY LYDIE POLFER

The Mayor declares that the Hariko project, launched in September 2015, was supported by the Red Cross, which paid the rent for the premises it occupied. However, at the beginning of 2018, the owners of the building announced that they needed the building for their own use. On 9 May, the Mayor, accompanied by Alderwoman Wiseler, visited the premises in question and determined that the owners of the building did indeed wish to use it for a project of their own. The fact remains, though, that the project will not get off the ground any time in the near future since it entails the merging of seven different parcels, and this must first be approved by a vote of the Municipal Council. Therefore, before any construction work can begin, steps must also be taken to clarify what must be sold for the public right-of-way. Consequently, a new meeting with the owners was planned for 5 July in order to explain to them the procedure to follow.

The managers of Hariko made an announcement suggesting that the City of Esch-sur-Alzette had offered to host Hariko in the former building of the Magistrate's Court (Justice de Paix). The College of Aldermen wishes to point out that it supports this project, and that prior to its completion, Hariko could be temporarily accommodated in two houses in Esch. Thereafter, it would be laudable for Hariko to also have a base in a large city in the south of the country.

Currently, the City does not have any buildings that can be made available to Hariko in the short term. However, on 12 June, a visit was made to the building that housed the former police station in Rue Glesener, in the company of representatives of the Red Cross. The City had initially planned to allow start-up companies to use these premises, which had to be renovated. But the top floor of the building – which is not accessible by lift – could be a possible solution. Electricity still needs to be reinstalled, as well as heating, windows, etc. The premises of the former abattoir in Hollerich could be an alternative solution, after they have been vacated by the Service Sports (Sports Department).

In that regard, plans have already been made to consult the residents of Hollerich, when the time comes, to find out how they would like to site to be developed. Finally, even ifthe City of Esch-sur-Alzette is able to provide Hariko with suitable premises, that would not prevent the City from continuing to seek an appropriate solution within its own territory.

QUESTION BY CARLO BACK

In its edition of Wednesday, 13 May 2018, rtl.lu described the flooding in the Pfaffenthal district after several weeks of torrential rainfall. According to the report, household wastewater had found its way into the rainwater drainage system. According to the same source, the Pfaffenthal district has a sewerage system that separates rainwater from household wastewater. 

In light of the preceding, I would like to ask the following question:

• What can the College of Aldermen tell us about the unusual events that occurred in the district's sewerage system?
• What are the reasons for these unusual events?
• What does the City plan to do to prevent unusual events of this type from occurring again in the future?

RESPONSE BY SIMONE BEISSEL

Alderwoman Beissel replied that, during the night of 31 May to 1 June, there had been an enormous amount of rainfall, up to 80 litres/m², whereas between 25 and 30 litres/m2 per hour is usually considered as a heavy spell of rain. Ms Beissel visited the location twice, accompanied by the Mayor.

The primary drain operates as a mixed system, collecting household wastewater and rainwater in the same line. It was also observed that many private connections are defective, which contributes to causing the drain to overflow. The water is discharged into the Alzette, and since it is narrow in that location, it quickly overflowed its banks, flooding the streets and cellars. 

Analyses were conducted to determine the origin of the inflows that made the drain overflow, and there are plans to install a bypass to prevent the Alzette from overflowing. The whole sector will be examined in detail to determine what additional measures can be taken.

During the infrastructure renewal work, the water drains will be enlarged to the extent possible.