A NEW PARKING LOT WITH 670 SPACES, IN THE HEART OF THE CITY

After more than 4 years of archaeological excavations and works, the new "Confluence" parking lot - located in the heart of Namur - opened its doors on June 30, 2021.

As its name suggests, this new parking lot is located on the emblematic site of the Grognon, at the confluence of the Sambre and the Meuse. The parking lot itself is composed of 4 underground floors of 5,000 square meters each, providing a total of 670 parking spaces (120 of which will be rented during the week for the needs of the Walloon Parliament). It extends up to 12 meters below ground level, or 9 meters below the level of the Meuse and Sambre rivers.

"Working in rock and water is quite complex. This parking lot was therefore designed as a floating boat anchored in the rock," explains Roland Cracco, CEO of Interparking. "To compensate for the water pressure, we placed no less than 400 anchors in the rock to ensure the stability of the structure."

In addition, it offers dedicated access, as well as a reserved area for motorcycles (20 spaces) and bikes (53 spaces). It also offers cyclists and motorcyclists the possibility of storing their equipment in a free locker.

Several anti-flooding devices Given the location, the engineers and architects have planned several anti-flooding devices: "On the Meuse side, on the quay, under the footbridge, we have placed two watertight cofferdams: one lifts up when it comes out of the ground and the other closes like a door." These mechanical barriers should prevent water from entering the second floor of the parking lot if the Meuse overflows. In the event of even more exceptional flooding, it is even possible to submerge the top level to ensure the stability of the construction.
Like the Parking du Beffroi, the Confluence parking lot is equipped with the latest technologies such as contactless entry via license plate recognition, the possibility of reserving a space online and compatibility with the Pcard+.

This parking card, available free of charge on request (www.pcard+), offers many advantages, including an evening pass in the Beffroi and Confluence parking lots, as well as a 10% discount in these 2 parking lots, managed by Interparking.

A parking lot well integrated into its environment Located at the foot of the Citadel and overlooked by a pleasant esplanade hosting the NID (Namur Intelligent and Sustainable; an ultra-modern space that will offer a brewery and a multi-purpose hall in a few weeks), this new parking lot is well integrated into its environment and meets a real demand for parking in the district. It is the only parking project south of downtown. And, from this point of view, it is particularly strategic.

This new parking lot is part of the overall strategy of the City of Namur, which appears in its Municipal Structure Plan (2012) and in its Municipal Mobility Plan (updated in 2018).
It is the result of a great collaboration between the City of Namur, the Service Public de Wallonie - SPW, the Parliament of Wallonia, the Intercommunale Namuroise de Services Publics - Inasep and the company Interparking, the current operator of the Parking du Beffroi de la Place d'Armes.

For this ambitious project, the City has requested the participation of Inasep for the feasibility study. At the same time, the "buildings and energy" and "roads and sewers" design offices studied the feasibility of the parking lot, the new traffic circle, the traffic pattern and their consequences in the neighborhood.

Archaeological excavations, carried out since March 2017, were organized as part of the site development work, mobilizing 30 people including a dozen archaeologists from the Walloon Heritage Agency - AWAP. These excavations, financed by Wallonia, the City of Namur and Interparking, have brought to light some beautiful archaeological discoveries.