Celebrating Les Étoiles, Water and Landscape

@ Ivry-Sur-Seine, Paris feat. Edric Shan Chandra (B.A. of Architecture)

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Les Étoiles by the architects Jean Renaudie and Renée Gailhoustet, built in 1970s is one of the earliest out-of-the-box social-hosing projects. However, 50 years of aging has started to show some of the shortcomings of the project, which we observed and heard from the residents, mainly regarding the water infrastructure and the summer heat impacting the Plaza Voltaire in the heart of the project.

In this regard, we propose the following design. The design bases itself on the concept of "Blue-Green Infrastructure" based on introducing water and plants into the plaza. We begin with opening up the plaza, within the confines of the underground parking garage. The bottom is turned into an infiltration basin, which is then covered by an impermeable clay layer. On top of this, we build our landscape design with two levels. The lower level is a permanent pond. There are terraces located on the sloped surfaces for people to sit down on. The higher edge is at the street level of the plaza.

Rainwater is collected by large yellow pipes that conform to the strict grid and outline of the existing buildings, hanging on to the buildings like vines, thus both complementing them, as well as celebrating their design, at the same time bringing the buildings as well as the plaza into a cohesive context.

The rainwater collected fills up the pond, which introduces evaporative cooling, both by itself and through the surface sprinklers and the trees introduced to the plaza. The exess water is let down into the infiltration basin through drain pipes located on the slopes to avoid flooding, and returning water back to the nature.

The increased amount of plants and trees not only introduce a new habitat for increased biodiversity but also help with making the plaza work in a more human scale. While Weeping Willows near to the pond help with controlling the water levels and providing shade, the Silver Lindens to the outer edges invite passers-by with their fragrance.