Bring the former premises of the École normale supérieure (ENS) out of their torpor by installing a museum, a school, a foundation, seminar spaces, coworking, or even hotel and catering activities... is the objective of the call for expressions of interest launched by the Saint-Cloud national estate to rehabilitate and enhance the Pavilions of the Gate of Honor.
Candidates have until Tuesday noon to submit a project proposing a new destination for this set of pavilions located along avenue de la Grille-d'Honneur, at the main entrance to the estate and which are at abandonment since the departure of the École normale supérieure (ENS) to Lyon in the 1990s.
Last vestiges of the Saint-Cloud castle destroyed during the Franco-Prussian war of 1870, this set of old outbuildings, some of which have been present since the 17th century, housed from 1881 to 1986 the premises of the prestigious training school, initially called the Normal School for Teachers, before it gradually left the premises.
After more than a century of occupation, the premises have since been disused and have only occasionally been used for the filming of films or series, such as “The Bureau of Legends”.
A use now abandoned for health reasons.
A rehabilitation and a new destination
Through this call for projects, the Center des monuments nationaux (CMN), which manages the 460 hectares of the estate on behalf of the State, intends to find a new destination for this complex made up of the Artois building and the Valois pavilions, Anjou and Priam, the last two of which were erected in 1955.
“The operation includes exterior and interior restoration work, then interior fittings of the functional spaces.
It must allow the valorization of this heritage and its long-term conservation but also the installation of new activities compatible with the state use of the site and the applicable regulations,” explains Brice Mathieu, the administrator of the national domain of Saint- Cloud.
The latter indicates that the activities of the winner must be complementary with one or more of the themes carried by the field, from culture to history including heritage, live entertainment, landscape and gardens, tourism , training or even sustainable development.
This new place open to the public will overlook the future Grand Siècle museum, which will see the light of day by the end of 2026 on the site of the former Sully barracks below, on the edge of the national domain.
The successful winner and their project will be revealed in the last quarter of the year.