Institutional seats of the European Union the ECSC (or be generously compensated); France supported Strasbourg, and Italy continued to promote Milan. However, it was decided that the Common Assembly, which became the Parliament, should instead be based in Strasbourg—the Council of Europe (CoE) was already based there, in the House of Europe. The chamber of the CoE's Parliamentary Assembly could also serve the Common Assembly, and they did so until 1999, when a new complex of buildings was built across the river from the Palace. The creation in 1957 of the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom) created new
Strasbourg-Ortenau Eurodistrict an area of 2,368 km². Building on regional and Franco-German cooperation, it aims to develop bonds between citizens, associations, public administrations, educational establishments and corporations. It is also in the context of European integration, with the presence of European institutions in Strasbourg, and has been compared to a European version of Washington D.C.. In addition to the array of European and Franco-German institutions, the district includes three ports, two airports and 10 universities. The Eurodistrict's Council is composed of 48 members, with 24 each representing either the French or the German side. The idea of a eurodistrict Strasbourg-Kehl (as it