Archinect - News

Paris Olympics Athlete's Village to cool without AC during summer games

2024-05-03T17:30:00-04:00

To combat the intense summer heat in France, a geothermal energy system will cool the athlete apartments in the Seine-Saint-Denis suburb. This technology utilizes natural resources and is expected to reduce carbon impact by 45 percent compared to traditional air conditioning systems. The system will maintain a temperature below 79 degrees Fahrenheit during the night, even in the event of a heatwave, according to Laurent Michaud, the director of the Olympic and Paralympic Villages.

The planned alternative system will distribute cold water from underground to cool through the floors of the apartments, which will later become home to more than 6,000 permanent residents after the more than 15,000 Olympic and Paralympics athletes vacate in September. The buildings all have green roofs and will reportedly be powered completely by renewable energy in line with Paris' 2050 principles. Their construction achieved a 30% reduction in its carbon footprint compared to other modern projects.

Other countries, meanwhile, have promised to bring their own portable systems as a backup as experts have forecasted another unusually hot summer for the continent.

Rowan Moore on how Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo plans to use the 2024 Olympics as the catalyst for a greener ‘City of Lights’

2024-01-02T13:46:00-05:00

She wants to make it a paradise of low pollution and healthy living, as friendly to pedestrians and bicycles as can be, with new developments planned to promote community life. This is a long-term endeavour, going back to Hidalgo’s predecessor Bertrand Delanoë, who was mayor from 2001 to 2014, but the Olympics have been enlisted to give it a boost. In the face of what Rabadan calls “a lot of political resistance”, the Olympics “gave us the opportunity to accelerate the transformation we need”.

Surveying the broadscale urban greening and pedestrianization program of 2023 ULI Prize for Visionaries in Urban Development laureate Mayor Anne Hidalgo, Rowan Moore declares the slate of changes “absolutely right” for Parisians while admitting that her “rhetoric has a way of outrunning reality.”

The Guardian critic also reversed his colleague Oliver Wainright’s praise of the ‘15-minute city’ concept developed by Hidalgo’s advisor Carlos Moreno, which he sees as “overhyped” and “a bit vapid.” The Opening Ceremony will feature with a 6-kilometer-long parade down the cleaned-up river Seine. Dominique Perrault’s 51-hectare athletes’ village in Saint-Denis, which serves to further showcase many of the methods and 2050 benchmarks championed by Hidalgo, will be turned over to the city for its stewardship and eventually reuse beginning March 1st.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo is the 2023 ULI Prize for Visionaries in Urban Development laureate

2023-12-14T18:03:00-05:00

The Urban Land Institute (ULI) has today announced Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo as its selection for the 2023 ULI Prize for Visionaries in Urban Development, one of the industry’s leading honors for community building and development worldwide.

“La Dauphine,” as she is better known to the press, has spearheaded a renowned program of green investments in the French capital while simultaneously embarking on initiatives aimed at pedestrianization and alleviating urban heat islands, among other key policy drives which have made her into a leading figure in the international movement towards ‘15-minute cities,’ housing justice, and better healthy buildings policies.

“Mayor Hidalgo’s leadership throughout two decades of public service has not only made Paris a healthier, more inclusive, and more livable city today but has also transformed the way other cities think about the possibilities of tomorrow,” Diane Hoskins, ULI Global Chair and the co-CEO of Gensler, said of her accomplishments. “He...

Archaeologists have uncovered a 14th-century sarcophagus underneath Notre Dame Cathedral

2022-03-23T08:30:00-04:00

A pre-construction archaeology dig meant to prepare a critical segment of the reconstructed Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris has led to the discovery of a lead sarcophagus and several small tombs according to an announcement from the French Ministry of Culture.

The discovery was unearthed directly beneath the 859-year-old cathedral’s transept floor and is thought to contain the remains of a key religious figure dating to the 14th century, which is around the time when Notre Dame’s apse was constructed.

The findings were of “remarkable scientific quality” according to France’s culture minister Roselyne Bachelot. Workers who made the discovery were preparing to install scaffolding at the location for the soon-to-begin historically-accurate re-creation of the church’s spire, which has been promised by the Macron government to be completed in time for the 2024 Olympics.

Several tombs and a leaden sarcophagus l...

Dominique Perrault on the role architects have in post-pandemic society

2021-11-09T11:48:00-05:00

In my opinion, many people consider architects less important today, while they demand engineers, landscape experts and environmentalists. It seems they no longer expect a comprehensive perspective and sensibility from architects. Architects should become advocates for architecture and fight for their role.

With the completion of the Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism 2021, Perrault will now pivot his focus to the 2024 Olympic Village plan that will help revitalize Saint-Denis, long-held to be one of the most neglected communes in the French capital region.

This year’s program focused on building resilience in cities as the specter of Covid loomed over the Biennale, causing disruptions in its traditional slate of in-person events. Perrault is currently finalizing plans for a new transit center in Seoul’s Gangnam district that will be completed in 2023.

Previously on Archinect: 2021 Seoul Biennale to open with online event on September 16th

“Going through the pandemic, it seems the proximity and heterogeneity of spaces have become important,” he said. “In order to keep up with the changing demand, new types of investment and a variety of projects are called for.”

Notre Dame cathedral is now secure enough to start the rebuilding process, potentially in time for 2024 Summer Olympics

2021-09-22T17:07:00-04:00

Two and a half years after a fire ravaged the centuries-old Cathedral of Notre-Dame in the heart of Paris, the building has been secured enough to start the rebuilding process, which is expected to be completed in 2024, according to the French authorities.

The news was announced last weekend in a statement on Facebook by Rebâtir Notre-Dame de Paris, the public body responsible for the conservation and restoration of the 850-year-old cathedral. This milestone and expected timeline meets French President Emmanuel Macron’s five-year plan to reopen the landmark, which would be in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

“We’re officially saying that the cathedral is now saved, that it’s solid on its pillars, that its walls are solid, everything is holding together,” Jean-Louis Georgelin, the head of Rebâtir Notre-Dame, told the French news outlet BFM TV.

Previously on Archinect: Not so fast: Following the Notre Dame Cathedral fire, heritage experts respond to Macron's ambitious five-year restoration deadline

According to Artnet News, this phase involved reinforcing the cathedral’s flying buttresses, protecting its gargoyles, and removing approximately 40,000 pieces of damaged scaffolding that had been in place for spire restoration at...

Notre Dame Cathedral appeals for additional funding as work begins to restore the church's interior

2021-06-17T13:03:00-04:00

The Parisian Archdiocese responsible for the custodianship and refurbishment of Notre Dame Cathedral is issuing an appeal for more donations after an initial push of nearly $1 billion following the devastating 2019 fire and partial collapse that captured the hearts of Catholics and culture lovers worldwide.

The church is now asking for an additional $6 to $7 million to fund the renovation of Notre Dame’s interior, which was made ineligible to receive any of the original gift following a ruling by a French court that limited use of donations to the restoration of the building’s structure and 12th-century facade.

The Archdiocese is seeking to make improvements aimed at modernizing the cathedral while at the same time conserving some of its sacred monuments in an effort to return the popular tourist destination to its original function as a place of worship and religious pilgrimage.

The Cathedral's interior before the 2019 fire. Photo: Flickr user bvi4092.

The four-part plan will start ...

Populous' Paris 2024 Olympics scheme striving to create “the most sustainable Games ever”

2017-09-20T17:49:00-04:00

According to the team, the designs for both the new and temporary venues and facilities ‘will seek to shape and integrate sporting spectacles in the city’s urban landscape while supporting Paris 2024’s commitment to be the most sustainable games ever’.

As seen in Rio 2016 to London 2012, sustainability is an ongoing issue for cities hosting the Olympic Games. Recently, Populous and consultancy group Egis unveiled the first rendering of their design for the Paris 2024 Olympics, stating that their concept will help create “the most sustainable Games ever”.

“Our mission was to understand how each sport and discipline could best function in existing venues, new buildings when required as legacy and temporary modular sites, identifying the best option in each case,” says Egis' Diogo Taddei, who supervised the work of the consortium. “One of the biggest challenges was to transform illustrious Parisian monuments into sports venues, adapting them to the requirements of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”

Dominique Perrault reveals plans for the Paris 2024 Olympic Village

2017-09-18T19:54:00-04:00

After decades of failed bids and one particularly humiliating loss to London in 2012, Paris has officially been named the host of the 2024 Olympics. Though the city plans on making the most out of its existing facilities, some new development will take place. One of such projects is the Dominique Perrault-designed and planned Olympic Village, which helped secure Paris' 2024 bid because the city said they would be unable to freeze the project, which had already begun work, for four years had they accepted hosting duties for 2028 instead.

Along with the majority of new venues being built for the games, the Olympic Village is set in Saint-Denis—the poorest of France's 101 mainland departments—in an effort to rejuvenate the area. The development centers around the Cinema City film studios created in a disused power station by the film-maker Luc Besson which will house that athletes' dinin...

It's official - LA will host the Olympics in 2028, Paris in 2024

2017-09-13T18:26:00-04:00

Los Angeles’ rollercoaster campaign to host the Olympics — an effort marked by early defeat and last-second negotiations — reached its conclusion Wednesday when the city was formally awarded the 2028 Summer Games. International Olympic Committee members, by a unanimous show of hands, voted their approval at a session in Lima, Peru, ending an unusual bid competition that resulted in two winners as Paris was simultaneously given the 2024 Games.

Paris and Los Angeles were officially awarded the 2024 and 2028 summer games, respectively. Both cities have previously hosted the summer olympics twice, Paris in 1900 and in 1924, and Los Angeles in 1932 and in 1984. The two cities already have some of the necessary infrastructures to host the games but the Olympics will most likely transform their built environment.