The Serpentin housing complex was built by the architect Émile Aillaud during the 1950’s and 1960’s. At the turn of the twentieth century, the Courtillières neighbourhood was in decline and suffered from a degraded image.
In response to this alarming situation, the French state and local government authorities chose to implement public funds through the National Urban Renewal Agency (ANRU previously known as the “Grand Projet de Ville”) in an effort to remediate the existing conditions for the welfare of the community and its residents.
In 2002, Agence RVA was awarded the contract for the design and rehabilitation of the ensemble of properties belonging to the public housing developer, HLM de Pantin, including the Serpentin housing development, the Fonds d’Eaubonne and Point-de-Pierre housing developments and a public park.
The aesthetic aspects of a building’s façade and its colour scheme were of extreme importance for the architect, but the coloured cement plaster façades were damaged over time due to multiple hasty building interventions and to the wear and tear of the fragile plaster surface material.
Architects in collaboration with a graphic designer decided of a unique and distinguished design. The street front is treated uniformly: a continuous, vertical colour gradient signals the Serpentin within its immediate context.
The park-facing façade is treated with multiple, sparkling horizontal colour gradients, varying in length such that the building’s entryways are differentiated from one another.
The Urban Renewal Programme (PRU) and its associated funding enable the amelioration of the housing units’ spatial organisation, the modernization of each unit’s kitchen and sanitary equipment as well as increased thermal and energy performance. The goal is to rehabilitate the Serpentin so that it meets current housing stock standards and codes.
Housing unit figures:
635 original housing units > 511 housing units after rehabilitation + a facilities management office;- 21 housing unit typologies; – 100 % of housing units with street and park views (except studio units); – 100 % of housing units with a park view.
Construction programme:
Complete interior renovation: only the exterior walls, floors and windows are conserved;
Equipment and finish upgrades:
Installation of new electric and sanitary equipment;
Installation of a new controlled mechanical ventilation system; Realisation of new wall and floor finishes. Source by Ante Prima.
Location: Pantin, France
Architects: Agence RVA
Principal: Dominique Renaud, Philippe Vignaud
Principal architect: Nicolas Trentesaux
Graphic designer: Atelier Pierre di Sciullo
Engineers/Economists: ARCOBA –ARTELIA
Landscape architect: Agence Vincent Pruvost
Client: Pantin Habitat OPH
Project site surface area: 75,000 m2
Housing unit density: 80 housing units / hectare
Year: 2015
Photographs: Luc Boegly, Courtesy of Ante Prima Consultants
