Lyon Part-Dieu Urban Shopping Center / MVRDV

MVRDV has completed the transformation of the La Part-Dieu urban shopping center in Lyon, France. The project has transformed the original building from the 1970s, “re-socializing” the shopping center and transforming Lyon’s city center. While sustainably reusing a significant amount of the existing building’s materials, the design rearranges internal programs, adds more space, replaces a redundant car park, inserts large windows, refreshes the characteristic old concrete façade, and adds an expansive rooftop park connected to the city by monumental stairs. With this extensive transformation, a building that was once an obstruction to Lyon’s vitality is poised to begin a new chapter as a vibrant city center attraction.