RUE BERTILLON
The project involves 68 social housing units and a nursery at 17 rue Alphonse Bertillon in the 15th arrondissement of Paris, on land owned by ICF Habitat La Sablière, who studied the potential for densifying parcel AH No. 79. The 1,544 m² site was formerly a 151-space car park and is part of a 1978-built housing complex with 242 units. It borders the railway tracks of Gare Montparnasse, more than 4.50 meters above street level, and is well connected to public transport, one kilometer from the station and ten minutes’ walk from Plaisance and Pernéty stations (Line 13).
Site Analysis
Planning regulations allow 5,300 m² of floor area, accommodating the housing, 526 m² for the nursery, and 155 m² for communal spaces. A strip of land previously used by the SNCF has been landscaped. The site is in zone UG, within a protected area, and in a designated green area. The SNCF easement has been integrated as a landscaped ramp with no construction beneath it. Party walls revealed by the demolition are partially covered, while the nursery and ramps are built adjacent. Noise from the railway is mitigated with high-performance glazing.
Spatial and Volumetric Organization
The project has two entities: an R+4 building forming an “S” and an R+12 tower by the railway. The R+4 aligns with existing buildings, providing a smooth street-scale transition, while the tower marks the railway entrance and dialogues with the skyline. A single accessible terrace provides landscaped, social space. The “S” configuration creates two gardens, one for residents, one for the nursery. The hall connects visually both gardens, and the ground floor can be converted into housing if needed.
Architectural Principles
The architecture is minimalist and precise, with clear volumes and detailed façades in light self-compacting concrete with a matt finish. Openings are modular, aluminum joinery, with glass opalescent balustrades and discreet corner loggias for larger units. Materials and detailing ensure durability, elegance, and high-quality execution.
Programming Flexibility
Housing and nursery are fully autonomous with separate access and gardens. The structure allows reorganization, combining or subdividing apartments, and converting the nursery to housing or offices. Outdoor spaces accommodate community uses like gardens or social areas, offering residents flexibility.
Building Functions
The underground car park has one level, leaving 350 m² of open ground, with 75 spaces (7 electric, 3 accessible, 7 motorcycles) and direct hall access. Bicycle storage (120 m²) is located north, adjacent to the road, accessible from the garden. Housing access is via a landscaped transitional space, with a single hall serving 71 units through two cores and providing visual connection to the courtyard. The nursery is independent, with its entrance on the street, recessed façade, and planters for privacy. The SNCF ramp has no construction underneath to ensure autonomous access.
Common Areas
A single waste room is accessible from hall and exterior. The caretaker’s lodge serves neighbouring buildings, with a view of the street, kitchenette, locker room, and sanitary facilities. Maintenance rooms are separate and accessed via the hall.
Housing Design
Design prioritizes light, comfort, and orientation towards open or planted spaces. 68 apartments are arranged around two cores, 61 with dual orientation, T1 and T2 mostly single orientation. Floor heights: 2.5 m for typical levels, 4.2 m at ground floor. Unit sizes: T1=34 m², T2=46 m², T3=63 m², T4=80 m², T5=89.5 m². Living spaces face outwards, service areas central, kitchens naturally lit, circulation minimized, loggias for the large apartments, no cellars.
Roofs and Terraces
The R+1 terrace is inaccessible and lightly planted with sedum. The R+5 terrace is communal, east-west oriented, with circular planters for vegetable gardens, flowering and wooden bosquets, and a shared workshop. Terrace landscaping supports urban habitat, biodiversity, and collective use.
Outdoor Spaces and Landscape
The project integrates into the south-Paris green network connecting squares and gardens. The Bertillon block interprets a contemporary bosquet with circular planting adapted to use and visual identity. Bertillon courtyard is planted, circular beds, and hedges. The SNCF access route is planted, and the nursery courtyard follows the same landscaping.
Biodiversity and Vegetation
Multiple vegetation layers—trees, shrubs, perennials, climbers—support local flora and fauna. Species are hardy, local, low-maintenance, and low-allergen. Composters and vegetable gardens promote recycling and community interaction. Plant palette includes lime trees, hawthorns, wild apple, elder, serviceberry, field and evergreen shrubs, climbers, and flowering perennials.
Comfort and Wellbeing
All apartments enjoy green views, seasonal variation, and sensory stimulation. Landscaping mitigates urban heat, increases thermal inertia, and reduces energy use. Plant selection ensures low allergenicity, and spaces are designed for low maintenance with differentiated management, excluding phytosanitary products.
