It is the story of a second life that begins for the Maison du peuple, in Clichy.
This emblematic building of modular architecture, designed at the end of the 1930s and described as a “mechanical jewel”, had nevertheless been abandoned for almost four decades.
The rehabilitation work, carried out by Apsys, a specialist in this type of urban operations, was officially launched this Thursday on behalf of the Ducasse Paris group, which will install the headquarters of its Manufactures here, in eighteen months if everything goes well. as expected.
Work on the Maison du peuple in Clichy was launched by Alain Ducasse, in the presence of Valérie Pécresse, the prefect of Hauts-de-Seine Laurent Hottiaux and the mayor Rémi Muzeau (from left to right).
LP/A.-SD
The cost of this project amounts to 25 million euros, including 4.6 million euros of public funding (State and region), only for the historic monument part.
If today there remain few witnesses of its first life, that of popular balls, cinema screenings, congresses and boxing meetings, the renovation project was designed with a real desire to respect it. this story.
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“The structure is completely preserved, the modular elements restored, we have carried out studies to find the original colors and will reproduce the tiles on the ground floor almost identically,” explains designer Patrick Jouin before continuing : “We took the time to find the most delicate way to intervene with regard to what already exists.”
And thus convince local heritage defenders with the Quartier Maison du Peuple association and national ones with Sites and Monuments.
“The other particularity of this project is that all the new interventions are completely reversible,” insists the architectural engineer Malo de Courville, who works for the Perrot et Richard firm.
Half-open floor and sunroof
Acquired by the Ducasse group for 2.1 million euros from the town of Clichy, the building nonetheless remains classified, and therefore subject to strict rules from the Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (Drac) which has validated all stages of the project.
“It will remain a plural house, with chefs from all over the world, cooks, chocolatiers and employees of the group, but also residents and architecture students who will come to eat or just discover the place,” insists Véronique Lartigue, president of the Ducasse Paris group.
The removable floor will be “half open” to show its structure and the opening roof will be activated throughout the seasons, allowing natural ventilation and, in fact, an environmental dimension to the project.
“Giving a second, intelligent and respectful life to what is already there,” concludes François Agache, general director of Apsys.