Social integration of Graz

Eberhard Schrempf

The city of Graz has one problem that the European Capital of Culture project saw as particularly significant. Graz is divided into two parts by the river Mur. On the left side there is the well-to-do society, the universities, the lawyers, the banks – all the rich people; on the other side of the river, live the poor people and the immigrants, there is the red light district, etc. The ECOC programme wanted to explore how the two sides of the city can be connected. A new bridge across the river was build with an artificial island by Vito Acconci. Another project was to build the new Museum of Modern Art, the Kunsthaus, on the poorer side of the city as a means of developing it and connecting it to the “official” face of Graz. This has worked well: in the area around the Kunsthaus and the Acconci island many new shops have opened, there is a new creative atmosphere there, with small companies, galleries, restaurants, hairdressers, communications agencies etc. This has created a more multi-cultural situation. It was not the classic model of moving the immigrants and the red light district out, these have remained, but it has diversified the co-existence within the city. The immigrants from the Balkan or the African countries and the affluent side of Graz are closer than they were before; this is a direct impact of the ECOC project. Of course, the rent and living costs have also gone up but this hasn’t been as pronounced as in other cities. This has been a very strategic investment into a neglected area in order to develop and integrate it. The ECOC project has benefited the entire city and its cultural scene.

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Eberhard Schrempf

Eberhard Schrempf

Managing Director of the Creative Industries Styria in Graz, Austria

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