Anonyme designs a green car park in Paris

A green car park sounds like an oxymoron. And yet, the Paris-based architecture studio Anonyme has done just that with the Bois de Prétre car park in the 17th district of Paris. An infrastructure with an appealing interior that presents itself to the neighbourhood as a shared, green park.


Hands up those of you who've ever had to search for your car in a multi-storey car park. Everything has already been said about these places, one of the necessary evils of our car-dependent cities. 
In any case, they are places without which local councils don't even authorise building permits but that, however, can be connoted, so much so as to make sense of their very existence that goes beyond just a place to plonk cars. The Paris-based architecture studio Anonyme created for its client, Paris Habitat, a car park that really challenges the prejudices and stereotypes associated with the category.
On a really narrow plot of land, the studio of Noureddine Souilah-Edib and Jean Frizzi came up with an underground, spiral multi-storey car park where the interior entryways are merged with the access ramps to the various levels. The spiral form means cars are parked in a radial position, so there are no hidden or dark zones. This is also helped by the continuous light system combined with the skilful use of splashes of colour on the walls and floors, together with huge, playful signage, Anonyme creates a luminous space so looking for your car is not a traumatic experience. Not only that but the signs balance the stand-out bare concrete material.
Coloured stairs and a glass lift provide access to the street level, which showcases the green heart of the project, the 2500 square-metre shared garden also designed by Anonyme. The garden is used by the residents of the apartment tower and gardening associations. A green space to enjoy but also to look over from the tower. The curving pattern inside the garden provides the narrative of the site topography and counteracts the bold geometry of the tower and of the actual site, while the access volume to the car park disappears from view thanks to a mirrored cladding.
The car park by Anonyme, shortlisted for the French national award, Équerre D'Argent 2017, is a tangible example of how attentive, creative design can give great results even in so-called no-man's land!

Christiane Bürklein

Project: Anonyme - http://www.architecture-anonyme.com/
Client: Paris Habitat
Location: Paris, France
Year: 2017
Images: Daniel Rousselot