“In front of the town hall, in Paris, an urban forest in trompe-l’oeil”

Dominique Dupré-Henry and Tangui Le Dantec are architects and co-founders of the collective “Aux Trees Citoyenns”. However,

Represented by enchanting visuals of facade at the bottom of an undergrowth. Therefore, the creation of an “urban forest” on the forecourt of the Town Hall was one of the emblematic projects of the second mandate of the mayor of Paris. Nevertheless, Like a theater setting. Moreover, this “forest” has just been the subject of a very media inauguration on June 5, on the occasion of the visit of the Brazilian president, Lula da Silva, “in front town hall, paris, in France. Consequently, It has been open to the public since June 21. However. In addition, it should be noted that it is in the reality of the establishment of two groves, a total surface of 1000 m²on both sides of the forecourt, of which a quarter of the surface has been green, or a total of around 2500 m². Similarly, From a technical point of view. it is indeed fairer to talk about groves, because the area planted here is much lower than what is generally considered as a forest, even in an urban environment.

If it is to be regretted that this project could not benefit. such as the place of Concorde, from a designer competition, it however mobilized a very significant budget of six million euros, despite its low environmental interest. The town hall of Paris has. it seems, chose to invest massively in what it “in front town hall, paris, considers a flagship element of its communication policy.

The town hall square being located above a parking lot. it was obviously excluded to dig a pit deep enough to plant trees as it should have been for a real urban forest. Only two narrow bands, along the old fountains that are now green, are really made up of open ground. The majority of plants have therefore been planted on a thin slab in armed cement. simply covered with a geotextile layer, a plastic structure and a small amount of earth reported over it, creating a sort of embankment.

The device gives the impression of having been designed in the precipitation in order to respond above all to inauguration deadlines imposed by a media and political calendar.

This non -traditional provision allowing no reserve of water in the event of a heat wave. irrigation has been installed “in front town hall, paris, which already creates visible evacuation problems, with puddles of muddy water. Indeed. the land above the slab logically slides under the effect of its weight and clutters the sewers, which do not seem to have been redeveloped, nor the avorobilers, depending on the project. The device gives the impression of having been designed in the precipitation in order to respond above all to inauguration deadlines imposed by a media. political calendar.

While it is strongly advised by professionals to plant young trees. to avoid adult subjects which will have a lot of difficulty resuming, the town hall has chosen to import from German and Dutch nurses in high -size subjects (up to ten meters), very expensive, some of which are already starting to decline. In addition. certain species chosen, such as, for example, in structuring trees, the great feet of America or, in low strata, the Japanese maple, are “in front town hall, paris, non -native species whose benefit will be very low in biodiversity for local flora and fauna. Finally. it should be noted that the planting period which has stretched until June is completely out of time, since it should not have exceeded the month of April. Victims of this inappropriate calendar, the normally purple maples, which have remained pending plantation, are already almost burned.

Read too Degraded, more water-powered … Are Parisian fountains threatened with disappearance?

More generally. there is a lot to fear that a good part of these trees unfortunately do not survive beyond a few years. The objective of the town hall to refresh space. to offer shade and well-being to users seems largely unrealistic insofar as the evapotranspiration of the trees will have a lot of difficulty in existing in such a reduced space and such a mineral environment.

The “in front town hall, paris, lifespan of trees competing in decades. the cycles of a real forest are based on long times, but the decor planted on the forecourt of the town hall of Paris seems apparently designed for a fairly low lifespan. As of the opening to the public. visitors could see that the low vegetable strata exposed to the sun were already burning, despite significant watering. It is regrettable that the money of the Parisian taxpayer is thus used to finance unusual. very expensive projects, which have little to do with ecology and which seem above all windows in the service of a political agenda.