Innovative and everlasting: 9 urban renewal projects changing Paris

After the rennovation of Les Halles and the development of the waterways, Paris has continued to shake off the limits of the Périphérique (the outer limits of Paris proper). At the border, the famous road ring will gain footbridges. The capital city and its neighboring communities have orchestrated impressive projects, inspired by innovative technology and putting culture and environmental protection first. Rehabilitation of industrial wasteland and old workspaces, transformation of train stations into living spaces, and the creation of green neighborhoods are all a part of this rejuvenation. Read on for some details of the most iconic projects!

A true architectural challenge to marry nature and design, the "Mille Arbres" project, at the Porte Maillot level, will become the green lung of north-western Paris (not far from the Arc de Triomphe). Thanks to the thousands of trees planted throughout the building, visitors completely forget the roadway, while the forest combats pollution. Taking on the form of an inverse pyramid to optimize the amount of space and sunlight, this futuristic construction will attract architecture fans.

The heartbeat of Paris is the center of the city. On the banks of the Seine there's a site unknown to the general public—currently, they are the Ateliers Parisiens d'Urbanisme (Parisian Urban Workshops) which occupy 40,000 m² (430,556 ft²) of the building. Transforming the building without denaturing its spirit is one of the big themes of this project, "Morland mixed with the Capital." Hotels, offices, gyms and shops will decorate this space in the future, giving it multiple functions. Hot tip for panorama lovers: at the very top of the building, you can get a 180 degree view of the city!

A bridge between Paris and Vanves, the project named "Sport, nature and woods" tears down the border between Paris and its neighboring communities. This large building is intended as space to live and practice sports in the south of the capital. In the dynamic days before the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, the 2,500 m² (26909 ft²) will be dedicated to physical activities. It will be the place to be for fitness fans.

Formerly dedicated to the fabrication of steel pipes, Les Halles Pouchard has been offered a new lease on life. Ideally located on the Ourcq Canal in northern Paris, with its feet in the water, the "Great Green Spaces" project is a true transition from former industrial space into an innovative community space. The building will welcome a hotel, a theatre, art galleries and restaurants. There's no doubt that culture and architecture fans will fall head over heels for the colossal 100,000 m² (1,076,391 ft²) project.

Between the Porte de la Chapelle and the Parc de la Villete, Éole-Évangile forms a great triangle of nearly 13,000 m² (139,931 ft²). The project? Transform the space into a new neighborhood, a model of urban ecology and sustainable development—that's the principle that will guide the creation of these residences, offices, businesses, and cultural and athletic spaces. A great garden of 4,700 m² (50,590 ft²), open to the public, will also be created, forming a flowered pathway between the different sites. It takes the French concept of flânerie (a sort of poetic wandering) into the 21st century!

Former factories of industrial boilers, the industrial wasteland "Babcock" in northern Paris offers a gigantic space of 52,000 m² (559,723 ft²) to welcome the "Fabrication of cultures" project. The ambition: pay homage to the past and apply the technologies of the future. Converted into cultural and athletic spaces, housing, commercial and workspaces, this former wasteland wants to be a catalyst of creation for Greater Paris thanks to the "Augmented Image," a new motor of cultural innovation of the metropolis.

The Fort de Romainville is one of the 16 forts that constituted the line of defense in Paris in the beginning of the 19th century. The entire neighborhood is beginning the transformation into an eco-neighborhood with the "Grand Lilas" ("Grand Lilacs") project, which will welcome different cultural and artistic locations. History buffs will appreciate the opening of a museum to the Résistance movement (against the Nazi occupation of WWII). At the heart of the greenery and very accessible by public transport, the "Grands Lilas" project will open up a great new hub of biodiversity and agriculture—it will be a breath of fresh air in the northeast of Paris.

The vast international Chapelle site has begun their first phase to open the doors to goods in Paris. The second phase will inaugurate the sports rooms, lodgings with a view of Sacré-Cœur, commercial enterprises, and above all, an urban farm of 7000 m² (75,347 ft²) installed on the roof of the building. The objective of this project (named "Mushroof"): provide neighborhood traders with locally grown products, sustainably grown. Soon, we'll all be going crazy over the 100% La Chapelle products!

Here Paris is preparing itself as a center for future enterprises. Here 2030, the immense site of Vitry-sur-Seine in the south of Paris will incarnate the model of a productive 21st century city. The "Ardoines Station center" is positioning itself specifically on digital technologies, with the welcome of FabLabs, the 3.0 event workshop. All of this will be housed in a true haven for connected entrepreneurs, with green terraces and animated kinetic façades.