Learning from le Plessis-Robinson

Once upon a time there was a le Corbusier-inspired housing area, dormitory banlieue, near Paris. A former garden city with a medieval past, taken over by brutal repetitive blocks of human containers mostly from the 1960s onward.

What could go wrong?

In just a few decades so many things could, and did.

I see three alternative paths that the city could have taken in the late 1980s:

1. Expensive total renovation of the failed modernist legacy of the 1960s and 70s.
2. Demolition of the failed modernist buildings and replacement with bigger ones and added density.
3. Demolition of the failed modernist buildings, liberation from the ideas that led to the failures, and replacement with a new, more humanistic approach altogether.

Paths 1 and 2 - currently the mainstream options - will not heal the failures. Path 2 would actually only accentuate the problem, copying the ideas that failed, but with steroids.

But le Plessis-Robinson took the third path, with the strong initiative by Philippe Pemezec (Mayor in 1989 - 2018), Jacques Perrinand (Mayor 2018 - currently), and award-winning architects such as Marc & Nada Breitman, Xavier Bohl and Fran?ois Spoerry.

I think this path is something we all should follow. It is the future of architecture and urbanism of human habitats, already there to learn from.

Le Plessis-Robinson has already received several prizes, eg the Philippe Rotthier European Prize for Architecture, for the best renaissance of an urban neighbourhood.

See for yourself:

Michael W. Mehaffy's introduction to le Plessis-Robinson: https://youtu.be/iFf3vq0KPHQ

My short walk on an early morning: https://www.facebook.com/marjouotila1/videos/552264706249906

By the way, 30-40% of le Plessis-Robinson is currently social housing. Who would have guessed?

*****

I had the great pleasure to join the International Making Cities Livable conference, organized 18-20 of May in le Plessis-Robinson.

My 8 key takeaways from the conference:

? Beautiful architecture and green urbanism play a key role in making livable, walkable places.

? First: understand where and why people want to walk, and then create places accordingly.

? Don't be fooled by renderings with copy-paste smiling, healthy, happy, young, successful people gathering in bright sunlight in a lifeless box environment. It won't happen in real life.

? Places can be felt as hostile or as friendly - and people behave accordingly.

? Design should be evidence-based, not ideology-based.

? A concrete desert, even without cars, does not mean anyone would walk there voluntarily.

? There's a connection between walkable neighbourhoods and our health and well-being, with a huge impact also economically.

? We are witnessing a paradigm shift. Welcome, at last, post-corbusian human habitats!

*****

The IMCL conference is a unique peer-to-peer gathering of civic leaders, professionals and scholars dedicated to transitioning to a more livable, humane and ecological generation of cities, towns and suburbs. The focus is on successful case studies and evidence-based research, sharing effective tools and strategies to drive real change. Especially to build, protect and enhance thriving public spaces, and the adjacent private spaces and uses that afford well-being, social interaction, quality of life, exercise, health, and economic opportunity, for ALL the residents of cities, towns and suburbs.?www.imcl.online/2022-paris