Reconstruction of the Bois-le-Prêtre Tower House

The Bois-le-Prêtre high-rise apartment building is located in the Pouchet district of the 17th arrondissement of Paris, on the northern edge of the city near the ring road Boulevard Périphérique. The original sixteen-story structure, built from 1958 to 1961, was designed by the French architect and urban planner Raymond Jules Lopez, who held the modernist idea of replacing the original urban structure with solitary high-rise buildings. The gradual deterioration of the fifty-meter reinforced concrete structure, which earned the nickname Alcatraz, was to be prevented in the 1990s by a major reconstruction involving a colorful revival and insulation of the exterior façade, which simultaneously destroyed the original modernist appearance. At the beginning of the millennium, demolition was also considered, but in the end, a competition for revitalization was organized in 2005, won by a joint proposal from Frédéric Druot with the studio Lacaton & Vassal, who, with the help of generous loggias, expanded the floor area from the original 8,900 m² to 12,460 m². The tower house contained a total of 96 apartments (4-8 two, three, or six-room apartments per floor). After the reconstruction, the building offers 100 apartments (1.5 – 7 rooms). A self-supporting steel structure was added to all four sides of the building, serving as an extension of the existing apartments, winter gardens (2m deep), loggias and balconies (1m deep). The area of individual apartments thus increased by 20-30%. The original façade with small windows was removed and replaced with large-scale glazing and translucent polycarbonate to allow more natural light into the interior, as well as to enable the residents to enjoy the view of the city more. Prefabricated components were used during the reconstruction, which allowed the construction work to proceed without the residents of the building having to move. The entrance areas also underwent a complete overhaul, which are now at the same level as the surrounding terrain and open towards a newly built garden behind the building. The ground floor also includes communal areas for all residents of the building. In addition to improving social conditions, the costs of heating the building were also successfully reduced by 60%.