‘Not since Haussmann!’: Residents move into new Paris quarter built with stone

It is “the largest building site using solid, load-bearing stone since Haussmann!” says its architect, TVK.

Together, the four buildings use more than 2,500 cubic metres of stone, a quantity TVK says is “unheard of today”.

It makes the development, called Éole-Évangile Triangle, an “instantly recognisable part of the Parisian landscape”, TVK adds.

Developed by Linkcity, a subsidiary of Bouygues Bâtiment, the Triangle has 118 homes, a 164-unit student residence, a 230-bed youth hostel, a 130-room hotel, a 159-unit residence for young workers, shops, a sports hall, offices, and a 7,000-sq-m public garden with vegetables and fruit trees.

The 1.3-hectare site on the rue d’Aubervilliers in the 19^th Arrondissement was a patch of post-industrial wasteland – formerly the site of the Villette gasworks (1858-1955) – with good transport links.

“The unprecedented choice of stone on this scale was an exceptional opportunity to revitalise the industry and its expertise,” TVK said, adding: “The process is certainly very old, but implementing it on a large scale was a real challenge.”

Project credits:

Architect: TVK

Landscape designer: OLM

Building and civil engineering: Berim Engineering, Carbone 4, AMOES.