Excerpt: Vivre Ensemble, a housing project by TAA (Taillandier Architectes Associés), seamlessly integrates urban living with nature, prioritizing green spaces, ecological preservation, and community well-being. Designed around a central block, it fosters connectivity through pedestrian paths and shared courtyards. The architecture emphasizes outdoor living with loggias and greenery, creating a harmonious balance between built and natural environments.
Project Description
[Text as submitted by architect] From its inception, this real estate project was designed within a location, within an existing territory, bordered on one side by urbanization and on the other by nature. It was this nature that inspired us.
We sought to preserve a high-quality landscaped environment, integrating mature trees with new plantings in order to prioritize and maintain ecological corridors and address several challenges:
- Urban challenges through the creation of a new entity, which will be integrated into a site that offers the advantage of being included in a network of pedestrian and cycle paths, close to urban amenities.
- Landscape challenges through the integration of the site’s tree heritage and landscaping to limit the visual impact of future buildings while maintaining a visible built-up area.
- Social challenge through the creation of living spaces that will be green spaces, places of rest and relaxation, walking, crossing and/or activities, in a multigenerational space.
The Launaguet block is ideally located on the streetfront for businesses, with direct access to the park, which enhances the usability of the senior living facility and the residential building beyond the block. The project we are proposing for the block complies with the lot specifications established by the urban planners. Indeed, we have maintained the desired urban alignments on Launaguet Road, the new east/west road, with an opening in the heart of the block, extending from the “Arsonval” block, and a facade overlooking the park to the south. But most importantly, we were able to preserve the two existing trees on this block.
In terms of layout, Vivre Ensemble was designed with a central block distributing access to the senior living facility. The two Senior Living buildings are accessible from the block’s outdoor spaces. The activity rooms and common areas of the senior residence are visible and accessible from Route de Launaguet. The social housing units have a separate entrance on the new road. Parking has been contained within the existing building on one or two levels. The parking areas for the senior residence and social housing are located underground on one or two levels.
To comply with the planning specifications of the lot sheet, we proposed a plan for a shared courtyard easement with the “Arsonval” block. This way, all the apartments in the senior residence and the social housing block benefit from unobstructed views of the surrounding parks, or from south, east, and west orientations. Due to this layout, we have fewer than 5% of small, single-family apartments facing north. The goal was also to protect the heart of the block from the nuisances (noise and pollution) of the Launaguet road. The terrace overhangs of the apartments are equipped with railing planters that serve as a protective plant filter.
The architecture prioritizes outdoor spaces by offering continuous loggias along all facades to allow senior residents, as well as those living in social housing, to benefit from the green spaces that this urban planning provides to the residents of this new neighborhood. To preserve the environment, the preservation of certain existing trees is planned, as requested in the development plan.
The hanging planters on the senior residence, in addition to the bioclimatic cooling benefits they provide, will generate gardening activities for seniors, whether in vegetable gardens or flower beds. This architectural element will bring the facades to life throughout the seasons, adding color and personalization to the residents’ tastes, with plantings ranging from geraniums to tomato plants, depending on the seasons and their moods.
The materials used are understated. Concrete structures, which can be exposed, and white plaster at the back of the loggias will be the dominant features. We will use powder-coated steel planters as railings for the senior living facility and micro-perforated sheet metal railings for the social housing facility. This system will allow us to play with the weather and color the facades with the reflection of the light. The white tone and the reflection of the powder-coated steel then take on their full meaning, highlighting the activity and diversity of the gardening. The loggia space becomes an extension of the apartments to the surrounding parks, so that the loggia acts as an “in-between” space, between the exterior and the interior.
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