Development corporation ADIM Nord with MVRDV and de Alzua+ have been announced the winners of an urban renewal competition in the French town of Villeneuve d’Ascq. Dubbed ‘The Beam’, the winning proposal will transform a cluster of disused parking lots and a former petrol station into a dense, pedestrianized haven, whose 15,000 square meters of offices, retail space and lodging will hover over the adjacent motorway as a icon of a larger urban regeneration effort for the town center.
More information on The Beam after the break...
Parking spaces will be tucked away into a subterranean 274-space car park, allowing room for the extension, demarcation, and connection of the existing green spaces. Adjacent buildings, which face away from the site, will be extended to form urban blocks and equipped with a new green patio at the center each structure.
The team ADIM with MVRDV and co-architect Jérôme de Alzua beat four competitors in a competition organized by Commune de Villeneuve d’Ascq.
Construction is expected to start in 2015.