PROJECT CARCASSONNE

The City of Carcassonne has more than 45,000 inhabitants and revolves around the medieval city listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, Bastide Saint-Louis (created in the 13th century) passing through the Pont Vieux (this link of stones loaded with 2000 years of history) and the port of Carcassonne on the Canal du Midi (built in the 17th century by the architect Pierre Paul Riquet and also classified as World Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 1996).

This project is part of a global revitalization policy for the Bastide.

The latter, created in the 13th century according to a pre-established plan, is still divided into "squares" delimited by four streets and which each covering between 40 and 65 acres. They have in the centre of a garden connected to the street by covered passages so that there are green spaces and wells. Jewel of the current town, the bastide is bounded by the boulevards laid out in the 18th century on the old ditches of the formerly fortified town.

The military enclosure and the gates defend the lower town (Bastide): the lower town enclosure was built from 1355 to 1359, under the orders of the Count of Armagnac; its circumference was 2,800 m; the bastions (Calvaire, St Martial, Montmorency) were built after 1359; At that time, we confined ourselves to erecting round towers at the angles, of a larger size than those of the other parts of the enclosure. Towards the end of the 16th century, on the occasion of the religious wars which devastated the South of France, the town was flanked by 5 bastions: 1 at each corner and 1 on the side of the enclosure, towards the west; it was the bastion of Saint-Martial to the north-west, the Bastion of la Figuières to the north-east, of Montmorency to the south-east,

It is in this remarkable environment that the project must take place.

The project will have to respond to several challenges and objectives:

- enhance the image of the Bastide

- offer structuring and appropriate equipment to residents and users

- bring together university courses scattered around the outskirts of the city in the heart of the city.

The public image of the project is built on three elements: The architectural style, the urban integration and the environmental approach adopted. The exterior image of the equipment must on the one hand be one of the supports for the dynamism of the Bastide and on the other hand, be welcoming to the students.

The direct external extensions such as the entrance square, the various plantings, the possible terraces, will have to stage the equipment in its urban environment and will fully participate in the enhancement of the latter. The connection to the public space will have to reveal clear and identifiable access for the users.