The controversial project ‘Mareterra’ or ‘Le Portier’ neighborhood is here. Monaco has successfully expanded its land by 3%. With just 2.02 km² land area, Monaco’s only choice for expansion was towards the sea.
And thus, the construction of the mighty Mareterra began, not in the existing land of Monaco, but on the sea. The project was announced in 2016 by the Municipality of Monaco and the construction began in 2018. In the initial plan, it was to be ready by 2025, but the result exceeded expectations and the ribbon for the opening was cut in December 2024. The main architect of the project was Renzo Piano.
Why is it considered Environmentally Friendly?
It is not the first sea expansion Monaco did, with the last one dating back to the 1970s. But, this time, the ecological factor was taken into account. Monaco expanded its territory by 6 hectares towards the sea, but the biodiversity was protected by adding corridors in its foundation, so the fish underneath can still roam around.
Additionally, solar panels are located on the roof of the building to produce renewable energy and the building uses geothermal energy for heating and cooling as well, in order to not be dependent on fossil fuel.
To add to that, more than 40% of the expansion is covered in green. There are more than 1,000 trees planted in the area, accompanied by parks and gardens. In this way, they preserved and promoted biodiversity and enhanced the air quality. Lastly, all buildings are designed to be energy sufficient, minimizing their carbon footprint.
The Most Expensive Neighborhood in the world
What drew the most attention regarding the Mareterra project was the price. Apparently, normal expensive was just not expensive enough for Monaco. For better understanding of how expensive Monaco really is, we created a chart comparing the price per square meter in Monaco in comparison with France, the EU, the US and worldwide.
Bar Chart created by Kyriaki Topalidou on Flourish
In this chart, it is evident how luxurious it really is to own an apartment in Monaco. As is clearly depicted, Monaco’s average price per square meter is around 50,000 euros. The apartments and villas in the Project Mareterra start from 150,000 euros per square meter, making it the most expensive neighborhood to live in in the world.
The Mareterra encompasses 100 luxurious apartments, 10 villas and 4 townhouses, and the whole project demanded 2 billion euros to be completed. Considering the price per square meter, it is safe to say that the profit was enormous. In fact, all the apartments and villas were sold while the project was still only on paper.
Of course, there is also a reason for this difference in pricing when it comes to buying a house or apartment. Below, we created another chart comparing the differences in GDP (gross domestic product) per capita between Monaco, France, the EU, the US and worldwide.
Chart created by Kyriaki Topalidou on Flourish
In the chart, we can see that the purchasing power of the population in Monaco is significantly greater than in any other place. Per year, an average individual in Monaco makes more than 150,000 euros, in comparison with other countries and continents, where only the US passed the 50,000 euro mark in 2020.
Is Mareterra truly ecological?
While the Municipality of Monaco and its architects claim it’s a truly ecological project, one cannot ignore the fact that they destroyed six hectares of marine biodiversity. So, do these environmental technologies that are incorporated into the building counterbalance the sea violation that took place?
As the Municipality will not give a direct answer to these questions, we asked the people living in or passing by the Mareterra to give their insight. Before giving our conclusion and opinion on the matter, take a look at what people said about the Mareterra in the video report below:
(Warch in 1800pHD preferred)
The verdict in the end is mixed. Some care more about their view being blocked, a few are indeed concerned about the marine biodiversity, while most prefer to not think about it at all.
Wrapping up, Mareterra indeed stands as a testament to human creativity. But, do the ends ever justify the means? One would have to wonder if taking up all these environmentally friendly measures truly compensates for the destruction of our natural ecosystem. Or, one would not have to worry at all, as many seemed to do. Mareterra, whether we want it or not, is there. So, we might as well admire it. It is, in the end, mighty.
For more info check our previous article as well on the marettera controversy:
