Residential building Bondy (France)

Anchored to the quay

The Seine-Saint-Denis region has long been regarded as a service area by its powerful neighbour Paris. The municipality of Bondy, which from 1845 was home to the capital’s “voirie” - a term used to describe an open dump - was particularly affected.

The opening of new transport lines as part of the Greater Paris project promises to incorporate these neglected areas back in an interconnected metropolitan area.

Against this historical backdrop, the presence of the Ourcq Canal, a former industrial infrastructure that runs through Bondy and other communes in the department, is a major asset.

Reflecting the approach adopted by cities across Europe to enhance the banks of their rivers, the urban development zone of the Ourcq banks is transforming an industrial wasteland into a residential area offering 1,300 homes in a pleasant setting.

Set amidst brick buildings, its luminous metallic appearance is a real eye-catcher. Badia Berger Architectes designed two buildings with a total of 60 dwellings, one of which is in the prow on the canal, clad with zinc. The mass of the project and the treatment of its envelope make the most of the light-coloured zinc cladding, which has been applied like a tight-fitting garment from the top of the roof to the foot of the façade.

The vertical standing seam joints accentuate the slenderness of the block and follow the curves of the main façade, with balconies at returning angles coming to the fore.

This contrast of folds cleverly enhances the volume with a minimum of resources. The reflective zinc becomes transparent on the balcony railings, which are closed by perforated corrugated zinc.

The different states of the material and its shaping create a vibrant, shimmering appearance, transposing the aquatic reflections of the nearby canal to the façade.

Viewed from the other bank, the building looks like a ship about to split the water.