Urbanism & Architecture

Paris Study Tour: 28 September–2 October 2011

The Urbanism of Paris: Old and New Traditional Neighbourhoods is organised by INTBAU Scandinavia, in collaboration with CEU – Council for European Urbanism, Norway.  Audun Engh will be tour leader, joined by local guides. During this four day tour, we will visit some of the most important historic neighbourhoods of Paris, including Île de la Cité, Marais and Quartier Latin, and will compare them with two recent developments based on traditional urbanism and architecture, Plessis-Robinson and Val d’Europe.

                                                  Montmartre

Woody Allen’s successful movie “Midnight in Paris” has been criticised by some for presenting a “nostalgic” image of Paris, focusing on attractive historic neighbourhoods, and carefully avoiding modernist interventions like Tour Montparnasse and La Défense. Others will see the film as a celebration of the living traditions of Paris and its urban qualities. One example is this location from the film, Place de l’Abbé-Basset, where the main character is picked up by a veteran car at midnight and taken back to the Paris of the 1920s. We will visit the location on September 29. We will visit another location from the film "Midnight in Paris", close to Pantheon: Rue Saint-Etienne du Mont. Nostalgia for the past, or a model for good, contemporary urban design?

                                                              Rue Saint Étienne du Mont

The French president and the Mayor of Paris are promoting new “business districts” with office towers, in an attempt to “modernise” Paris.  However, Plessis-Robinson and Val d’Europe offer a different model for the future expansion of Paris and the urgently needed regeneration of “les banlieues”, the failed social housing projects surrounding the historic city centre.

An article about the skyscraper projects and the campaign to prevent them is available by clicking here

                                                                    Digital image of proposed Paris skyscraper

We will also meet members of the NGO “SOS Paris”, currently involved in a campaign to prevent several new skyscraper proposals, close to the historic centre of Paris. The SOS Paris events will be co-organised with CEU, Council for European Urbanism.

The CEU board will be represented by Michael Mehaffy, Peter Drijver, Susan Parham,  Matthew Hardy and Audun Engh. The two recent and ongoing developments we will visit have learned from “best practice”, the well-functioning central parts of Paris, with traditional mixed-use urbanism, human scale, and high density provided by a low- and medium-rise block structure. Paris has the highest urban density in the world, with few buildings more than seven stories high. The city is loved by people from all over the world.  The mayor of Plessis-Robinson saw every reason to use this urban model when planning a new town, after demolition of failed slab suburbs from the 1960s.

                                                          Plessis-Robinson, an urban extension of Paris still under construction

Plessis-Robinson, 6 kilometres south of Paris. Masterplan and design by François Spoerry, Xavier Bohl, Marc & Nada Breitman and others.


                                                   Val d'Europe, a new urban development

Val d’Europe, close to Euro-Disney. Masterplan by Cooper, Robertson & Partners, NY. Architects include Pier Carlo Bontempi, who designed the award-winning public space Place d’Toscane:

Further information on Val d'Europe is available on the following websites:

http://www.cooperrobertson.com/what_we_do/projecttype/cities/val.php
http://corporate.disneylandparis.com/CORP/EN/Neutral/Images/uk-2008-06-04-val-d-europe-award-for-excellence.pdf

Information on registering and attendance fees follows the Tour Programme.

DAY 1: Wednesday 28 September

Arrival in Paris (any time)
Accommodation: please book you own accommodation.  We suggest that participants find a hotel in the Montmartre / Pigalla / Gare du Nord area. Please contact Audun Engh ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) for further information.

20.00: Optional dinner at a restaurant to be announced.

DAY 2: Thursday 29 September

09.00 - 18.00 (lunch 13.00 – 14.0): Walking tours: The origins and history of Paris.

Musee de Carnavalet (history of Paris) -http://goparis.about.com/od/parismuseums/p/Musee_Carnavalet.htm
The  Marais area – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Marais
Île de la Cité,  the Island where Notre Dame is located.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%8Ele_de_la_Cit%C3%A9
Optional tour of  the Gothic Sainte Chappelle - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sainte-Chapelle
The Left  Bank and Latin Quarter – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_Quarter,_Paris
Visit to the legendary “Shakespeare and Company” English Bookshop - http://www.shakespeareandcompany.com/ .
Sorbonne, Pantheon and a visit to one of the key locations for Woody Allen’s film “Midnight in Paris”,  Église Saint-Étienne-du-Mont, at Place de l’Abbé-Basset  (see image above, and
http://littlebrownpen.blogspot.com/2011/07/midnight-in-paris-steps.html)

20.00: Optional dinner

DAY 3: Friday 30 September

09.00 – 13.00: Walking tour; the Paris of 19th century urban planner Baron  Haussmann.-  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georges-Eug%C3%A8ne_Haussmann
The grand  boulevards  – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boulevards_of_Paris

13.00 – 14.00 Lunch

14.00 – 17.00: Future urban development in Paris: a very different city? Meeting with “SOS Paris”, an NGO in opposition to several proposals for new skyscrapers, close to the historic city centre

http://www.planetizen.com/node/47061
http://sosparis.free.fr/p1_s.htm

Tour of urban development sites with proposed skyscrapers in the 13th arrondissement (left bank), and a visit to the  SEMAPA company showroom: “Paris city government has contracted SEMAPA to carry out the largest urban planning operation in Paris since the work by Haussmann on Paris’s Left Bank in the 19th century” – http://gie-adefrance.fr/en/members-and-partners/semapa.html

20.00: Optional dinner.

DAY 4: Saturday 1 October

09-00 – 13.00: Tour of Plessis-Robinson, 6 kilometers south of Paris (travel by train). This is a recent urban development. Mixed-use quarters based on the traditional urbanism and architecture of Paris have replaced post-World War II slab suburbs and failed social housing projects. Masterplan and design by François Spoerry, Xavier Bohl, Marc & Nada Breitman and others.

http://www.ecocompactcity.org/Plessis-Robinson/New_Eco_Compact_City_Plessis_Robinson.html

13.00 – 14.00: Lunch

14.00 – 17.00:  Tour with SOS Paris of proposed skyscraper sites in Batignolles, 17th Arrondissement. Visit to the developer’s exhibit building in 147 rue Cardinet.

DAY 5: Sunday 2 October

09.00 – 14.00 : Tour by train of  Val d’Europe, close to Euro-Disney. This is a new, large urban extension based on traditional urban design and architecture. Masterplan by Cooper, Robertson & Partners, New York.  Among the architects is Pier Carlo Bontempi, Italy, who designed the award-winning public space Place d’Toscane:

http://www.traditional-building.com/Previous-Issues-08/JunePalladio08Peoples.html

Val d’Europe web sites.

http://www.valdeurope.com

http://www.cooperrobertson.com/what_we_do/projecttype/cities/val.php

http://corporate.disneylandparis.com/CORP/EN/Neutral/Images/uk-2008-06-04-val-d-europe-award-for-excellence.pdf

14.00: Lunch,  end of tour programme and departure for airport, or an  optional afternoon / evening  programme in downtown Paris, if your departure is Monday. For example a boat trip on the Seine – http://www.france4families.com/paris/RegionsParisAttractionsSeine.htm


Tour registration fee:

275 Euro, £250, 2200 NOK, for the 4 day tour programme (travel, accommodation and meals not included). Please contact us for payment details. The registration fee can be reduced for participants who will not attend the full programme.

Travel to Paris:

Recommended arrival in Paris is anytime on Wednesday 28 September, or arrival on Thursday 29th if you decide to skip the tours of the city centre on Thursday morning and afternoon. The registration fee can be reduced for participants who will not attend the full programme. Please contact us for schedule details if you will arrive on Thursday.

Recommended departure time is on the evening of Sunday October 2.  We will be back at the hotels from the Val d’Europe tour by approximately 15.00.  Your flight departure should be no earlier than 18.00.

Some participants may choose to stay until Monday 3 October.

Trains:
Eurostar from London: http://www.eurostar.com/dynamic/index.jsp
You will find train connections from all European cities on the Deutsche Bahn website: http://www.bahn.de/i/view/GBR/en/index.shtml

Flights:
All major airlines have connections to Paris, direct or via other European cities. Please note that Paris has several airports: http://www.discoverfrance.net/France/Transportation/Air/airports_Paris1.shtml
“Paris is principally served by two international airports: Roissy/Charles de Gaulle (CDG) to the north of the city, and Orly (ORY) to the south. Together, these airports welcome 75 million passengers annually, with flights to 500 cities in 132 countries. Most international flights arrive at Roissy/CDG, while domestic French flights generally arrive at Orly.”

Both CDG and Orly offer ground transport into the city center.

A third international airport, Beauvais-Tillé (BVA), has gained increasing popularity with some European travelers in recent years, handling over 2 million passengers during 2007. Located 84 km/52 miles from Paris in the department of Oise (province of Picardy), Beauvais primarily serves as a hub for budget airlines hailing from Ireland, the U.K., and a few other western European countries.

Easyjet has flights to both Charles de Gaulle and Orly: http://www.easyjet.com/asp/en/book/index.asp?lang=en
Ryanair – www.ryanair.com – has budget flights from many European cities to two airports, Beauvais and Paris-Vatry (close to Euro-Disney).

Beauvais http://www.ryanair.com/no/airport-transfer/BVA
“Beauvais Airport is located approximately 80 Km from the centre of Paris. There is no rail service from the airport but there is a bus service. Journey time is approximately 1 hour. Cost is €13.00.” – Paris-Beauvais Airport Shuttle

Vatry airport      http://www.ryanair.com/no/airport-transfer/XCR
Travel from Paris-Vatry Airport to downtown Paris is rather complicated.  “Vatry is located 20 km outside Châlons-en-Champagne. A bus connection called ‘Vatry Bus – Vatry Shuttle’ is available from the airport to Reims, Châlons-en-Champagne and Disneyland Paris. At Disneyland Paris you will be able to reach a number of hotels directly or connect via Chessy Rail Station. From the Chessy Rail Station you can reach central Paris via the RER rail network. Bus tickets for all destinations can be purchased online www.paris-vatry.com or in the passenger terminal.”

Hotels:
Please book your own hotel. We suggest to choose a hotel in one of these areas: Montmartre - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montmartre , Pigalle or Gare du Nord  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gare_du_Nord .

In the morning, we will meet at a Metro station in this area for tours. Optional dinners will also be in this area. Hotels can be booked via airlines, or from www.hotels.com and other online agencies.

Please contact Audun Engh ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) for further information.

History of Paris – Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Paris

Paris tourist information:
http://en.parisinfo.com/

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For information and registration, please contact:

Audun Engh
INTBAU Scandinavia / CEU Norway
Oslo, Norway.
Email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Mobile phone: +47 92622626