Villeurbanne is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France.

It is situated northeast of Lyon, with which it forms the heart of the second-largest metropolitan area in France after that of Paris. Villeurbanne is the second-largest city in the metropolitan area of Lyon and the 20th most populated in France.

History

Its current name comes from a Gallo-Roman farming area, established at about the same time as Lyon (then Lugdunum) and known as the Villa Urbana („town house“). It would then become Urbanum, then Villa Urbane and, ultimately, Villeurbanne.

Until the 19th century, the city was merely a patchwork of distinct villages separated by fields and undeveloped land. These villages have mostly survived, and nowadays form the neighborhoods of Charpennes, Cusset, Croix-Luizet, Maisons-Neuves, etc.

With the industrial era, Villeurbanne’s economy soared: the textile industry was the first to bloom, followed by mechanical and chemical ones. The factories lured in numerous immigrants, most notably from Italy. Transforming from a rural community to an industrial town. Mayor Lazare Goujon (elected 1924) engaged the city in a vast public works initiative. Arguably the most visible heritage of this program is the Gratte-Ciel, a housing complex made up of two Art Deco towers and annex smaller buildings, lining up along the Avenue Henri Barbusse. Having undergone thorough renovation, the 19-story twin towers have become an emblem of the city.

• Grattes-ciel building, Villeurbanne
• Lazare Goujon Square and Villeurbanne Cityhall

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public senior high schools:

• Lycée Faÿs
• Lycée Alfred de Musset
• Lycée Marie Curie Villeurbanne
• Lycée Pierre Brossolette
• Lycée Magenta

Private schools:

• Institution Scolaire Immaculée Conception is a private school from elementary to high school/sixth-form with three campuses, two elementary and one secondary.
• École Beth Menahem (a Jewish school from preschool to senior high/sixth-form)

Colleges and universities

Many colleges and universities of the Lyon metropolitan area are located in Villeurbanne. Many of these are located on the La Doua campus, home to the Claude Bernard University (Lyon I), a public university, CPE Lyon and the Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon, one of the premier engineering institute (Grandes écoles) in France, very well known for high quality education and for research in France.

Weekend schools

The Association Pour le Developpement de la Langue et de la Culture Japonaises, a part-time Japanese supplementary school, is held in the Maison Berty Albrecht in Villeurbanne.

Transport

Villeurbanne is well served by the Lyon area public transit system, the TCL (Transports en Commun Lyonnais). The east branch of subway line A runs through the city heart, and the new tramway lines T1 and T4 connects the La Doua campus to the Lyon business and commercial district of La Part-Dieu and the Presqu’île downtown.