In the fall of 2007, shortly after his election as President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy held a series of meetings with prominent architects from around the world, and also mentioned for the first time his plan to create a "Greater Paris" following the example of London or Los Angeles. In his opinion, the formation of a single whole from the city itself (2 million inhabitants) and its suburbs (6 million) will contribute to a more even progressive development of all districts, the regeneration of depressed territories, and the transition to “sustainable development” on the scale of the megalopolis. In the meantime, Paris is separated from its "banlier" by the ring road, as well as by a complex administrative system: the suburbs, divided into 7 parts, and the city, divided into 20 arrondissements, are equally subject to the leadership of the Ile-de-France region. This prevents their well-coordinated interaction and the implementation of general reconstruction programs. Therefore, there are “aristocratic” suburbs on an equal footing (Vincent or Versailles) and neglected and unsafe suburbs (La Courneuve and Clichy-sous-bois, where the recent riots took place).
Sarkozy's goal is to make high-quality urban life accessible to all residents of the “Greater Paris”, as well as to turn Paris into the first metropolis of the period “after the Kyoto Protocol,” reconstructing it in accordance with the existing environmental situation.
In June 2008, after lengthy consultations with leading French and foreign architects, sociologists, geographers, economists and other researchers, Sarkozy commissioned 10 teams of architects to develop options for the development of Paris by 2030.
The projects presented vary: from over-ambitious and radical to purely utilitarian and making minor changes to the existing situation.
Richard Rogers, who was an adviser to the mayor of London Ken Livingston for 8 years, and now works with his successor Boris Johnson, sees the city's main problem in the disunity of its administrative structures. He also proposes to develop his transport system, hiding it underground, and the vacated spaces and roofs of houses should be turned into green recreational areas. This will remove the existing barriers between the city center and the suburbs - highways and railways. Rogers believes that it is necessary to transform the "banlier" into full-fledged urban areas with residents of different nationalities and social strata, with residential buildings, offices, a variety of shops and leisure centers. Once his project is brought to life, the travel time for an ordinary Parisian to and from work should be no more than 30 minutes a day.
Roland Castro proposes to scatter green spaces, iconic cultural and administrative institutions throughout the "Greater Paris": the Elysée Palace - the presidential residence - will move to a depressed northeastern suburb, in the troubled La Courneuve, Central Park will be laid out like New York, other areas will see a new opera house and a "national boulevard" modeled on the one in Washington.
According to the plan of Christian de Portzamparc, the ring road should be equipped with an overpass for the high-speed train line, and all train stations in Paris should be abolished, using the vacated spaces to compact the urban fabric. They will be replaced by the Europa-North central station in Oberville. There will also be four new business districts around Paris.
Jean Nouvel, together with Michel Devigne, propose to include new buildings in the existing fabric of the city, which are environmentally friendly, functional and attractive, which should improve the quality of life of citizens. It is also planned to create zones of lower building density, a variety of green spaces, offset by high-rise buildings - also green.
Antoine Grumbach, listening to the words of Napoleon, develops Paris along the Seine to the sea - along the axis Paris-Rouen-Le Havre, which Bonaparte called a single city. It is planned to build a high-speed railway along this line and comprehensively develop the ecological and economic potential of the river.
Yves Lyon is adding forests and agricultural land to the Greater Paris, which should lower the average temperature in the city by 2 degrees by 2100.
Venetian architects Bernardo Secchi and Paola Vigano propose to develop Paris according to the "sponge" principle, combining buildings of different density and developing a network of waterways.
The MVRDV bureau considers it necessary to develop the transport system, hiding it underground, and to create residential areas and recreational zones in the vacated spaces.
The collection of “Greater Paris” projects is not even a competition of ideas so far: no one plans to choose the best one, let alone bring it to life. At the same time, the ideas of all participants in this enterprise will be used in the development of an official strategy for the city's development in the coming decades, which, if the economic situation does not interfere, will become more ambitious than even the plans of Baron Haussmann.
