Images: © Salem Mostefaoui

A marker of modernity

Based on the hypothesis that the Champs-Élysées is a marker of modernity, the study by PCA-Stream suggests that the legendary thoroughfare would embody, if not prefigure, the changes of our world. Since its inauguration in the 17th century by André Le Nôtre, in order to open up the perspective of the Tuileries Garden beyond the walls of the capital, the avenue has always been the Mecca of modernity – in terms of architectural and urban considerations as well as those of lifestyle and consumption. From this point of view, it is high time that it was brought into line with the Anthropocene. To achieve this, the architect proposes to reconnect the top and bottom of the avenue in a coherent “ecosystem”. The upper part, from the Arc de Triomphe to the Place Franklin D. Roosevelt, would be, according to him, a “planetary hyperplace”, a concept borrowed from the French geographer Michel Lussault, who defines it as a territory where the tensions of contemporary globalization are expressed. The lower part, characterized by gardens laid out in the time of the prefect Baron Haussmann, is rather a “hypervoid”, a dull space that no longer attracts anyone.

Following the heat waves that hit the city hard in recent years and the growing attention paid by citizens to the issue of global warming, the project proposes nothing less than to transform the avenue into an “extraordinary garden”. To achieve this, PCA-Stream’s plan is based on three key concepts. The first is to shrink the space dedicated to cars by reducing the number of lanes from six to four and by pedestrianizing large parts of the surrounding streets. The second aims to restore coherence to the existing gardens, which are now largely dismembered, by developing an intense artistic, culinary, sports and leisure program. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the project plans to plant a large number of trees to fight against the urban heat island effect, absorb fine particles and improve the well-being of the people who walk along the avenue.

Champs-Élysées: the project sections

Starting from the Tuileries Garden, the project is divided into different sections. The Place de la Concorde, today a large, paved expanse serving as a crossroads for the major axes that converge there, is largely pedestrianized. At its corners, four small gardens are created, thus freeing up a vast paved square, which can be used for gatherings and public events. The new pavement, partially permeable to rain, is interrupted by the pre-existing monuments – the fountains, the obelisk and the urban furniture – to which are added two water mirrors which are supposed to refresh the square by nebulization. By linking the square directly to the Grand and to the Petit Palais, the Champs-Élysées gardens constitute the natural extension of the Tuileries Garden to the west. They are the result of the renovation of the various existing green spaces dating back to the time of Haussmann, redesigned to accommodate children’s playgrounds, accessible lawns, sports fields and kiosks. The pedestrianization of the Avenue Winston Churchill and of the Pont Alexandre III allows for the creation of an entrance space for the museums and the various new public facilities. The reorganization of the banks of the Seine with the installation of a floating swimming pool and the extension of the existing car tunnel will finally allow these new green spaces to reach the water.

Along the whole avenue, the most spectacular part of the transformation is achieved by the replacement of the pavements, which extend from the Place de la Concorde to the Arc de Triomphe. They are made of light granite slabs with a high albedo and are shaded by two rows of existing plane trees, whose pits are enlarged to facilitate their growth. By considerably reducing the space devoted to car traffic, the project provides for the creation of a green promenade and a wide cycle path. These lead to the Place de l’Étoile, which is redesigned in a similar way to the Place de la Concorde. The Arc de Triomphe, now isolated in the middle of a noisy roundabout, is protected by a crown of vegetation. The concentric rows of trees that surround it are integrated into a continuous promenade that constitutes the western limit of the project.

Goals and open-ended questions

According to its initiators, the project aims to make Parisians rediscover the avenue by improving the quality of pedestrian spaces and significantly increasing the amount of green space. And yet, is this really the goal of a project carried out by a private association representing such considerable financial interests? It is impossible not to notice the fact that the spaces the project proposes to redevelop are mainly the entrances to the avenue’s commercial spaces, which are among the most expensive in the world. In 2019, number 79 of the avenue was sold for 613 million euros, that means almost 80,000 euros per square meter. Faced with this speculative bubble, is it not rather to make these commercial spaces more attractive again that this project has been so strongly supported by the private sector?

Interestingly, the initiative is officially not only about the “sustainability” and “desirability” of the spaces. It also aims to be “inclusive”, for example by increasing the number of benches, public toilets, accessible lawns, public facilities and kiosks with “affordable” prices. On an avenue that has been, certainly since the protests of the yellow vests movement in 2019, a symbol of the growing inequalities in French society, these “inclusive” interventions seem to want to defuse possible criticism. While there are some important aspects that still need to be solved – for instance how the new avenue with all its plants and flowerbeds will be used for military parades and big events – the quality of the proposed design seems beyond question. It remains to be seen how the mayor’s office plans to carry out the project and what weight the powerful lobby will have in its implementation and in determining the use of the future public spaces.