Quartier des Etats-Unis

Architectural Review, The, Sept, 1997 by Martin Meade

After the First World War, Garnier was asked for a revised project, consisting only of housing with some ground-storey shops, for a quarter of the original site. Three prototype blocks, of three and four storeys, containing a total of 35 flats, were built in 1921. Simplified decorative details, and the addition of extra storeys, were among modifications introduced before a further 1568 flats were built to an increased density in 1929-1934. Each flat had a we and a (separate) kitchen, but there were no bathrooms, no hot-water supply and, although lifts were proposed by Garnier, none was provided. Local traditions were adapted for the construction: external and party walls 400mm to 500mm in thickness of rammed concrete with clinker aggregate, finished externally with lime render, and brick partitions. Only the floors, roofs, staircases and canted loggias were of reinforced concrete.

The modernisation and repair of the 1603-flat estate was initiated in 1985 by the OPAC du Grand Lyon (public housing office). The estate now has a population of 4000, some of whom moved in when the estate was still brand new. Over the years, families had carried out their own home improvements bathrooms have been improvised, kitchen fittings added and a number of loggias glazed in, to gain an extra room. Basic maintenance had long been assured by the OPAC but, by the 1980s, more extensive works were needed, to bring the houses up to current requirements for thermal insulation, electrical wiring and the like.

Works were begun in 1985 - without consulting the tenants, who objected vigorously. A new masterplan was drawn up in 1991, this time in consultation with the tenants, but it was rejected by the OPAC, which considered it too expensive. A less ambitious plan was finally agreed by all concerned, limiting the scope of the works to minor improvements to bathrooms and kitchens, the closing in of loggias and replacement of windows, the insulation of flank walls with panels of polystyrene and external redecorations, and the insertion of lifts. To sugar the pill, a local group of artists - Cite de la Creation - was commissioned to decorate 16 of the flank walls with murals depicting Garnier's Cite Industrielle and his major projects in Lyons. These murals, and one show flat with period furniture and fittings, now constitute the Musee Urbain Tony Garnier (which received a UNESCO award in 1991).

Since 1992, the rehabilitation of the housing has been conducted by four different teams of architects, working on different phases. Changes of policy, and cost paring, have resulted in some inconsistencies in detailing. These have been offset to some extent by the landscaping. Landscape architect Ilex has sought to reinstate the spirit of Garnier's landscaping by restoring or replacing the original concrete pergolas and seating, to increase privacy of ground-storey flats by the planting of hedges. And to exclude cars and unauthorised car parking, the spaces between the housing blocks have been treated as outdoor rooms. To the south, a large open space has been restructured, to designs by Michel Desvignes and Christine Dalnoky, to provide clearly defined areas catering for different activities and age-groups, arranged round a tribute to the resistance heroes Rene and Madeleine Caille, in whose honour the square has been named.

1 The others were La Mouche Abattoirs (1906-1928), the Grange Blanche hospital (1910-1933) and Gerland Stadium (1914-1924).