One of the challenges of the Rive Gauche neighbourhood project is to recreate a strong, physical link between the south of the 13th arrondissement and the banks of the Seine. As such, the railway tracks have been recovered and built, with several cross-cutting paths leading between the newly constructed buildings.

The T10A Sud block has a strategic position in the neighbourhood: it is found at its edge, directly linked to one of Paris’ oldest regions.
Furthermore, it can be seen from the other side of the site, and therefore serves as a backdrop for various views across the urban landscape, by fully occupying the depth of field. It sits at the end of an extended view down the 400 metre promenade which runs along the Halle Freyssinet building.

We have built on a contextual approach of distant shots and close-up views of this block in order to develop the proposed project.
We have chosen 4 main areas of development, based on the goals of the works report and our interpretation of the urban and architectural specifications.

The underlying idea of our proposal is that the T10 block is not just an end result, a terminating vista blocking any other visual relationships. The building façade, through the use of stone scabbling and staggered depths, must carry and support the line of sight through to the surrounding neighbourhoods, to rightfully create this link with the older existing area.

This site has two interpretations: The project sits at the intersection between urban routes, railways, an esplanade, and varied building densities, including low density (Halle Freyssinet), high density and framing buildings. Beyond these long reaching views, the façades will be viewed up close, through its use as a living space.

Finally, through this dual interpretation - daily life and the major urban framework - a key theme is born: a city built for its residents, with this large plant-filled esplanade acting as a living and meeting space. This desire to transform Paris is clear in the developments carried out in the Paris Rive Gauche neighbourhood. Paris wants friendliness, a city with human dimensions which benefits from the height of the buildings in this neighbourhood to open up to the air and sun. A city with light links, accessible on foot and bicycle, but above all an increasingly environmentally-friendly city.

Our concept for the three plots is cross-cutting: each building has its own architectural identity, but they are all united under several shared ideas:

• the skyline is broken with openings to look through, allowing the air and light to circulate. The angles are chiselled, the buildings streamlined.

• The façades make their role and use as a living space obvious (it is clear that it is housing and student housing) however from a distance the staggered depths gives them a very urban appeal.

• the environment as a key theme: each resident has a tree within easy reach! Shared terraces and gardens, private planted terraces and loggias, green gardens, green roofs planted with large trees: this biodiversity will be visible everywhere, on our façades and available to residents, students and families, and people working for the SNCF.

• And of course, the garden! It will be visible from afar, in front of the Halle Freyssinet building and at a distance, with two beautiful visual openings.

Furthermore, the garden and the building façades (housing and Minefi) will be illuminated thanks to the broken skyline and openings. The ground floor commercial areas are as transparent as possible. The water extends up to our garden through the use of plants and mirrors.

At the meeting point between the esplanade, water and monumental staircase, we create a visual opening to a garden which means that the garden is not behind the buildings but WITHIN the urban landscape.