The area of Pont Cardinet Station is undergoing significant urban regeneration, with new housing, offices and a highschool being built on the former industrial area and railyards. The tapering site is shielded by an office building from the train tracks, and will eventually be connected to the city with a second block of housing on the other side. It is located relatively close to the periphery, but is still surrounded on one side by classic Hausmannian boulevards and blocks. How to relate to this historic environment? How to improve the quality of social housing within budget limitations? How to create limited cost housing which is socially, architecturally and environmentally innovative?

The criss-crossing balconies and walkways which characterize the proposal create high quality, sheltered outdoor spaces, two metres in width, for the residents. Some balconies connect multiple apartments, allowing shared spaces and the proverbial request for and egg by neighbours. Together, these balconies form a three-dimensional network of outdoor spaces. A three-dimensional garden, which combines privacy and collectivism. Some of the balconies are supported by a latticework made from recycled plastic and metal, surrounding the entire building. The transparent volume reinforces the block’s urban volume, and allows plants to grow and creating a green block. It creates an additional wall , isolating the island acoustically and thermally. The block becomes a green and transparent continuation of the Haussmann typology, anticipating the development of further interpretations and permutations on the model.