Tour Signal High Rise

Located in far Western Europe, Paris is at the edge of an industrial-urban core that runs from Rotterdam to Milan. Given its scale, La Défense is one of Europe’s leading business districts. Back in 2005, EPAD launched the “Renouveau du Quartier de la Défense” La Défense revitalization program, with the goal of maintaining and consolidating its strategic position and international draw.

courtesy of Wilmotte and Associates

The first towers will appear against the skyline in 2015, including the Tour Phare tower by Thom Mayne and the Tour Generali tower by Valode & Pistre. The installation of the Tour Signal will be part of this considerable undertaking, which is critical for maintaining La Défense’s level of excellence. The Tour Signal will stand out from its neighbors because of its mixed-use program. It will be the first tower to contain a mixture of shops, offices, residential condominiums, and a tourist residence hotel; this s possible thanks to a layout “articulated between different autonomous and complementary programmatic entities.”

The tower has been considered in relation to a scale much larger than its individual parcel; it has taken into account the overall urban renewal taking place in La Défense and its surrounding districts, introducing mixed-use and the notion of proximity. The site of the future tower already shows strong potential for accommodating new public spaces and becoming a real urban project.

courtesy of Wilmotte and Associates

The dominant part corresponds to the desire to liberate as much space as possible at the foot of the tower to ensure that the building will not be circumnavigated, but rather passed through. Consequently, the base of the tower will be 80% accessible to the public. A crossroads between Puteaux, La Défense, and train lines will involve dynamic development and generous amounts of landscaping, in step with an up-and-coming district.

Today, the greater Paris region is Europe’s most densely populated urban area, yet paradoxically it still does not have sufficient green space. We think it is important for a business district like La Défense to set the bar for a high quality of life, and to that end, we propose installing a landscaped park at the base of the tower.

courtesy of Wilmotte and Associates

Project Info
Architects: Wilmotte and Associates
Location: Paris, France
Investor: Groupe Financière Centuria
Developer: Bouygues Immobilier
Architect: Wilmotte & Associés SA
Structural consultant: Bollinger + Grohmann
HVAC consultant: HL-PP Consult
HEQ coonsultant: Buro Happold
Fire safety coordinator: APEX – Assistance Prévention EXpertise
Landscape architect: Neveux Rouyer
Area: 115 000 m²
Offices: 50 000 m²,
Residential units: 10 500 m²,
Hotel, tourist residences: 42 500 m²,
Shops, facilities: 9 000 m²,
Other: 3 000 m²
Year: 2008
Type: Mixed use, Retail, Hotel, Residential, Offices