Landmark sites - French Waterways Authority (VNF)
This preliminary study for a multi-site urban project involved VNF's landmark sites in Toulouse. Its purpose was to lay the groundwork for reclaiming, redeveloping and renewing three exceptional sites linked to the Canal du Midi and central Toulouse: the Amidonniers site and its filtration basin; the Port Saint-Étienne; and the dry dock at the Pont des Demoiselles. It had several objectives. One was to reveal and showcase the exceptional heritage and identity of these sites, buildings and structures. Another was to use a mix of participatory and innovative temporary-activation design approaches to better define how these sites should relate to the canal, the city, and the wider metropolitan area. It also identified how the sites could be used to plan, size and reposition VNF's work within the city, create a VNF showcase in Toulouse, and introduce complementary programming that would serve the needs of the surrounding neighbourhoods and raise the economic and cultural profile of the waterway and the metropolitan area. It laid the groundwork for a project of the highest urban and environmental quality, showcasing how public and landscaped spaces can be designed and managed long-term. This would help secure the legal and financial future of the multi-site urban project.
Lucas Monsaingeon, Project director
Jean-Pierre Serna, Project manager
Biotope, Ecology and natural environments
OGI, Infrastructure and River works
What time is it, Anthropologist consultant
Écologie Urbaine et Citoyenne, Consultation
A ET Cetera, Urban and VNF activity programming
Oskaprod, Project development
Eco+Construire, Economy
The filtration basins, the Port Saint-Étienne and dry docks are close to the historic city centre in the core of the Toulouse metropolitan area. They are connected by the Canal du Midi, itself a UNESCO World Heritage Site recognised for its outstanding universal value. Each of these sites, to varying degrees, has a rich and distinctive identity. Their tangible and intangible heritage is historic and contemporary and inseparably linked to the Canal du Midi.
In July 2021, VNF commissioned the Atelier d'Architecture Philippe Prost and its partner group to design a masterplan for these sites. The goal was to develop a practical proposal that addressed local realities, the local histories of these places, and future regional challenges. The project involved a multi-site perspective and an interdisciplinary, participatory design philosophy.
The project team included architects, heritage architects, urban planners, landscape architects, programme managers, engineers, ecologists, anthropologists, sociologists, museography specialists, lawyers and economists. The design work was further enriched by regular input from a wide range of VNF staff, community representatives, residents, and various stakeholders from the city, the metropolitan authority, the Haute-Garonne department, the Occitanie region, and the State (the Ministry of Culture, the regional cultural affairs office, and the regional environmental office).