Arlesheim: Foundation stone laid for uptownBasel
The foundation stone for the uptownBasel project was laid on the Schoren site in Arlesheim (BL). A "Competence Center for Industry 4.0" is to be created.
By 2025, the approximately 70,000-square-meter Schorenareal site in Arlesheim, where the Alioth electricity company once produced locomotives for the SBB, is to be developed into a smart manufacturing hub. According to the initiators, it is currently the largest construction project in northwestern Switzerland.
Around 50 technology companies with a total of 2,000 jobs will one day settle in uptown Basel. The competence center will consist of seven production halls and 35,000 square meters of office space. New halls will be built and existing buildings converted. uptown Basel is also set to make its mark in terms of sustainability: Among other things, it is planned to use the waste heat from the planned data centers; a wood chip plant using waste wood will supply the entire site with energy.
First construction leased to 70%
According to the initiators, the first leases have already been signed: Technology groups Axians and Bouygues will become tenants in uptownBasel's first building, called The Pioneer. The five-story building includes three column-free halls spanned by steel girders. Above the production halls, 9,000 square meters of office space will accommodate approximately 600 employees. The building will have a total floor space of 25,000 sqm and is expected to be ready for occupation by the end of next year. 70% of the space has already been leased.
The investment for uptownBasel is between CHF 400 and 500 million and is being made by the family office of Thomas Staehelin, long-time president of the Basel Chamber of Commerce. "We want to stimulate innovation processes and thus carefully manage the development of our area. We see ourselves as an impulse generator and are creating space for companies that want to shape the industry of the future together," he said at the groundbreaking ceremony. (ah)
