Costly project divides Parisians
Source: Agencies |
March 26, 2011, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
PARIS is building a colossal shell-like glass and steel canopy over its Les Halles shopping center in an 800 million-euro (US$1.1 billion) revamp of what has become an eyesore of dated architecture at the heart of the capital.
The vast project - costing more than London's 2012 Olympic stadium or France's 2.5-kilometer Millau viaduct which is the world's tallest bridge - should transform the decades-old transport hub and underground mall into a striking visual landmark, even if Parisians are divided over the aesthetics.
The city's latest grand architectural project follows the building of a giant glass pyramid as a new entrance to the Louvre museum and a book-shaped national library by the Seine. The architects plan to put together the 17,000 square meter canopy offsite and erect it in one piece.
"We'll bring it in almost pre-fabricated, and everything has been designed to rest on the existing underground structure without adding any more pillars so as not to disrupt activities," said Patrick Berger, one of the designers.
The renovation, set for completion in 2016, will include a redesign of the site's 10-acre garden and a revamp of the underground station. One of Europe's busiest, it links five metro lines and three suburban train lines including the one that brings in visitors from Roissy airport.
But it is the undulating canopy with its pillarless greenish-yellow louvered roof that will take up the bulk of the cost and which is attracting the most criticism.
"It's going to be an absolute catastrophe. Architecturally it's rubbish and financially it's a scandal. The cost is absolutely astronomical," said Elisabeth Bourguinat of local association Accomplir which is fighting to halt the plans.
The louvered glass slats could let in rain, critics say, while the steel cables needed to stop the roof from caving in may block natural light, making electric lighting indispensable.
Planners defend the design and say it will open up the confined and in places tatty underground shopping center.
The vast project - costing more than London's 2012 Olympic stadium or France's 2.5-kilometer Millau viaduct which is the world's tallest bridge - should transform the decades-old transport hub and underground mall into a striking visual landmark, even if Parisians are divided over the aesthetics.
The city's latest grand architectural project follows the building of a giant glass pyramid as a new entrance to the Louvre museum and a book-shaped national library by the Seine. The architects plan to put together the 17,000 square meter canopy offsite and erect it in one piece.
"We'll bring it in almost pre-fabricated, and everything has been designed to rest on the existing underground structure without adding any more pillars so as not to disrupt activities," said Patrick Berger, one of the designers.
The renovation, set for completion in 2016, will include a redesign of the site's 10-acre garden and a revamp of the underground station. One of Europe's busiest, it links five metro lines and three suburban train lines including the one that brings in visitors from Roissy airport.
But it is the undulating canopy with its pillarless greenish-yellow louvered roof that will take up the bulk of the cost and which is attracting the most criticism.
"It's going to be an absolute catastrophe. Architecturally it's rubbish and financially it's a scandal. The cost is absolutely astronomical," said Elisabeth Bourguinat of local association Accomplir which is fighting to halt the plans.
The louvered glass slats could let in rain, critics say, while the steel cables needed to stop the roof from caving in may block natural light, making electric lighting indispensable.
Planners defend the design and say it will open up the confined and in places tatty underground shopping center.
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