Car-free streets, geothermal heating and solar panels: Paris's new eco-district

The Guardian

19-05-2025

In recent years, Paris has undergone several transformations in an effort to become a greener, more pedestrian-friendly city. This commitment to sustainability and livability is on full display in the north-western neighborhood of Clichy-Batignolles. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
Designers have spent the last two decades redeveloping a 54-hectare (133-acre) former rail yard into a dense, green, walkable neighborhood. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
The new neighborhood, in the city's 17th arrondissement, exemplifies the '15-minute city' concept of urban planning, in which residents can access most services they need within a 15-minute walk, bike or transit ride from their homes. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
The new development has a population of about 7,500 people, according to city estimates. About 70% of the neighborhood's 3,400 homes are either mixed-income social housing or rent-controlled. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
Buildings, including the 13-story UNIC (pictured), are built to passive design standards. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
The UNIC building houses a metro station and a kindergarten. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
Clichy-Batignolles uses a geothermal heating system, and solar panels power many of the buildings. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
The site is home to several ambitious and high-profile architecture projects, including the Paris courthouse, which was designed by the Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
The 10-hectare Martin Luther King Park, also known as Parc Clichy-Batignolles, anchors the neighborhood. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
The park features a pond with native plants, as well as a fruit orchard, playgrounds and a skatepark. Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian
The neighborhood is connected to public transit and features car-free streets and walking paths.
Photograph: Ed Alcock/Guardian