S'ABONNER À CITÉNEWS

En vous abonnant à CitéNews vous pourrez :

- rester en contact avec la Cité internationale universitaire de Paris

- être au courant des actualités mensuelles de la Cité internationale universitaire de Paris

- partager les articles publiés sur le site www.ciup.fr

Close

Every year the Cité Internationale accommodates 10,000 students, researchers and artists in its 40 houses.

Citescope

THE PARK

HISTORY

 

An important original project

The Cité Internationale stretches along the wide boulevards in the south of Paris on the site where the last military walls in the city, built in 1845, used to stand. At the beginning of the 20th century, the local government wanted to turn the site into a beltway of parks, and the Cité Internationale was one of the first projects to include the ideas of that urban planning scheme. Even the original plans for the site included a park between constructed areas, and this park was designed by two landscapers, Forestier and Azema. While the site includes a diverse range of building styles and sizes, the landscaping, which is well designed and well maintained, ties all the buildings together and creates a harmonious setting.

 

Did you know?
Landscaping in the park could only begin after the last residents of the area had vacated the site, in 1934. The first buildings were already rising out of their new-laid foundations when the work on the grounds surrounding them began.
 
A second youth

Public use, time and pollution have left their marks on the park, and in the year 2000 the Cité Internationale decided to restore the outdoor areas to their original lustre. The renewal project was planned by Reichen and Robert, both landscapers, and is in keeping with the original intentions of the park’s design. Some hundred trees were cut down in order to provide more open space and unobstructed views within the park. Trees were planted over the following two years to replace some of the ones that were cut down. 

 

Did you know?
The restoration project provided the perfect opportunity to fix anything that had been broken in the park and make it more welcoming to all visitors; pathways were repaired and benches, lamp posts and drinking fountains were installed and bicycle parking areas were created, while access for disabled visitors was improved across the whole site.