Richez Associes

Richez_Associés news this autumn - first most is the result of the call for proposals " Inventons la Métropole du Grand Paris" (Inventing the Greater Paris Metropolis)" announced October 18th during a film screening to all participants in the Pavilion Baltard, Nogent-sur-Marne - a real happening!
We are proud and delighted to be the winners of 2 of the 3 projects that we competed in:

• Marne Europe / Bry-Villiers-Champigny: despite the energy deployed by Frédéric Blerot, in collaboration with several associate architects that included OMA and Brenac & Gonzalez, the project of Compagnie de Phalsbourg / Kengo Kuma, XTu and others won. Congratulations to them all!

• Pont de Rungis-Thiais-Orly: led by Vincent Cottet with Vinci Immobilier and François Leclercq, the "Faubourg Métropolitain" proposal was selected. As a result, we were attributed a 400-housing unit project.

• Pôle Gare des Ardoines station in Vitry-sur-Seine: we won, as part of the consortium led by Linkcity that included associate architects at PCA, NeM, Tolila+Gilliland and Le Penhuel & Associés, on the same site where construction of the landscaped bridge that we designed to cross the railway line will commence soon. We were attributed two office buildings within this new business district that incorporates beautifully rehabilitated railway concourses.

Our participation in the Métropolitaine project, initiated by Société du Grand Paris, with three stations and two maintenance centres is to be extended by these two projects in the new neighbourhoods generated by the Grand Paris Express that adjoin the Pont-de-Rungis station on line 14 and the Ardoines station on line 15.
Unexpected, another event this autumn: the Grand Prix de l’Urbanisme 2017 awarded to the Liège tramway by the Chambre des Urbanistes de Belgique. We worked on the project since 2011 part of a consortium with Greisch, Liégeois consulting engineers, Atelier d’Architecture du Sart Tilman and the firm Canevas. A first PFI tender we undertook but declared invalid, based on the award-winning urban development project, has just been re-launched. Appointment in 2 years time to discover the Liège redeveloped around its tramway!

In addition to "Inventons la Métropole" – first, the competition news includes three cable car projects; the urban cable car is a good public transport solution to cross a natural or artificial obstacle: a competition to span the Penfeld launched in Brest last year led the way. In Toulouse, we competed with a project to cross the Garonne River and highway; in Orléans, where the cable car will cross the immense Fleury-les-Aubrais railway yard; and in Saint-Denis, Réunion. We were unsuccessful in the first two competitions… so all our hopes rest on this last-mentioned project, currently being judged!

With ADIM, there is also the call for expressions of interest "Immeubles à Vivre en bois" (Timber buildings to live in) an Angevin project launched by PUCA and ADIVbois; a fire station in Bourg-la-Reine in collaboration with Pierre Dubus; and a car park in Dunkirk. Its extensively ventilated brick facades, carefully set out according to their location, attracted the attention of the jury at the end of July. We were declared winners for a project hastily carried out - the tender call is already launched!

As for tender calls - several successes to note: our order book was enriched by a production centre on the Orly Airport runways; the MRT station to be built in Bry-Villiers-Champigny in transfer with our station on the future Line 15; building over to cover the Porte de Montreuil in partnership with Systra and Arep; and also, two future urban design appointments - guidelines for the redevelopment of the south-east quarter at La Défense and the master plan for the PSA site regeneration in Aulnay.

Since last May, 5 buildings have been delivered. In chronological order:
- "One" residence for LNC, just behind the Grande Arche in La Défense. Designed by Farshid Moussavi whom we assisted since the design competition in 2015, the project obtained a Pyramide d’Argent Award and today proudly installs its offset balconies within the now Greater Paris historical perspective.
- Voies Navigables de France building in Valenciennes, which deploys its wooden trusses along the Escaut Canal, echoes the brick town houses within the neighbourhood.
- the extension of the Paris Santé Cochin biotechnologies nursery that complements the original building; clad in copper-red panels streaked with green glass strips together with a glazed volume, a terrace planted with pine trees
- still in support of Farshid Moussavi, the Folie de la Lironde in Montpellier. The curved offset balconies on 9 stories provide a variety of views and situations. True luxury - metallic grey canvas curtains extend the texture of the cladding in 3 waves to create real outdoor spaces.
- and finally, Achard maintenance centre in Bordeaux. The new building is to maintain trams and buses. It uses the language of the existing building; prefabricated concrete base and sheet metal cladding. The workshop is lit by long skylights expressed in facade. Their geometry provides thermal gain in winter and shade in summer.

China has gone calm in recent months for Richez_Associés. So, looking to other continents: Parramatta in Greater Sydney, we designed the layout for the agglomeration second tramway - the local authorities searched the web to find us and, quite rightly, to identify us as the top specialists on the subject! And at Bouaké in the centre of the Ivory Coast, we begin design of a public works project financed by AFD; the reconstruction of the Grand Marché. Highly anticipated, construction is expected to start in 2019.

contacts :
Donald Christol : buildings
Marie-Claire Barré : public spaces and urban design