The media library in Colombes, near Paris, is part of a new Social Center whose purpose on a broader scale is the urban renewal and upgrading of the town’s Fossés Jean/Bouviers district. For this reason, the building had to be exemplary.
To strengthen the unique characteristics of this site, the volume is open to the city, detached from the ground and creates a transparency and a deep view into the edifice from the place Michelet all the way to the gardens of the Social Center. The raised and aerial volume generates a space under the building that enables one to see, through a glazed lobby and interior street, all the various entities of this facility.
The “Courbes” project is part of the urban renewal program of the ZAC Charles de Gaulle in Colombes. The area is easily identified thanks to the eclectic architecture of the urban fabric, blending bungalows and apartment houses dating from the 1980s-90s. The tramway has finally reached this neighborhood, which has enabled the beginning of its genuine transformation owing to its highly prized proximity to the business district of La Défense.
The pavilions are located near the western entrance of the Lagravère Park in Colombes.
This longitudinal park follows the river Seine, which becomes the focal point of the route over 2 kilometers. The buildings are cleverly inserted, woven into the orthogonal grid formed by the landscape, engaging in a precise game of inflexion and dialogue with the trees. The three constructions are spread out along the promenade according to their function. The first pavilion, situated closest to the entrance and the future tramway stop welcomes visitors; further along, the shop emerges from the trees onto the riverside path and the lastly, the public toilets stand back, located deeper in the park, behind the trees.
The ‘Simone Veil’ group of schools forms a structural element in the urban composition of the new eco-neighbourhood. It is tightly embedded in the dense urban fabric, opposite a park and straddling the maintenance workshops for the new tram line.