This policy brief showcases a solution to improve liveability for inhabitants and tourists through commercial policies in the city centre. The aim is to regenerate liveability thanks to a programme of maintaining or even creating commerce in the city centre. This has been implemented since 2017 in Le Havre – a medium-size industrial port city in French west coast, coping with economic restructuring, demographic decline and an ageing population. Based on local experience and interviews, this brief demonstrates how to maintain or even re-develop a solid commercial offer that has beneficial effects for the whole city. The key lesson learnt is that to build a resilient liveability, accessible rents are necessary, as well as a concentration and diversity of activities. They are essential and possible thanks to the implementation of new laws. The brief offers several policy recommendations to enable this process.

3S RECIPE is part of the Joint Programming Initiative (JPI) Urban Europe's ERA-NET Cofund Smart Urban Futures Call (ENSUF). This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 857160.