Place Simon-Goulart

Type

Espaces publics

Date de réalisation

2013

Ingénieur civil

Ott & Uldry, ingénieurs civils

Maître de l'ouvrage

Ville de Genève, Département des constructions et de l'aménagement

Autre(s) intervenant(s)

Les Eclairagistes Associés (LEA)

Surface brute

4'000 m2

Coût

4'500'000

Procédure

mandat d'études parallèles

Architecte

Atelier Descombes Rampini

Interview de l'architecte

Descriptif

Place Simon-Goulat is articulated around three periods in the history of construction in Geneva: to the southwest the medieval church of Saint Gervais, to the southeast a built facade reconstituted in the ancient style during the 1950s and to the northeast the head of the modern building designed by the Geneva architect Marc-Joseph Saugey (1951-1955). The square, created in 1956, was pedestrian at the time and rapidly become a car park. he recent project wishes to be minimalist. Executed with limited resources, it gives a very contemporary vision of town planning in the twenty-first century. Within this heteroclite environment, the ground was covered with a single tinted concrete plate without joints to obtain a uniform surface with the installation of two major elements: a circular concrete pond, seven metres in diametre, that creates a relationship with the church and, along rue des Terreaux-du-Temple, a very busy street, a plant border and long wooden urban furniture. The latter is slightly raised off the ground giving it a special status, offering varied use, for instance benches and tables for snacks, discussions or debates. The pertinence of the concept is confirmed each day by the presence of numerous pupils from nearby schools. A long concrete bench in a simple style and artificial lighting adapted to the relevant sub-spaces completes the urban planning approach.