Hydro-Productive Parks

2019
Team Point of View
The geological duality of the region generates landscapes of chalk and water. Two territorial structures amplify these landscapes and come in three nested scales.
The exploration of the link between geology and industry allows to anchor the project into the productive bioregion. Rising waters by 2100 will favour Saint-Omer as a destination of the retro-littoral fold.
Two productive parks appear along the canal and Vauban boulevard, creating “capable landscapes”, which will welcome an interlocal synergy network and a structure of densification.
The hydraulic park foreshadows flood with an evolutive landscape, while soil transparency leads to urbanization. The chalky park reveals traces of a landscape Archaeology and deploys geothermics as a lever of urban renovation.

Jury Point of View
The author's considerations are based on the bioregion and rise in sea levels anticipated by 2100, forcing coastal activities to move inland. The proposal transcends administrative boundaries and is based on common topography. Two project sites are proposed for productive parks whose development and uses depend on the specific environmental characteristics.
Based on a remarkable analysis of the geological and geographic landscape, the proposal is immensely forward‐looking and relevant on several spatial and temporal scales.

2021-2022
Following the competition, a seminar on water was organized in March 2021, followed by a collaborative workshop between the 2 winning teams, for 3 days (in November 2021). At the same time, an open call for tenders was launched, won by Atelier Iris Chervet for:
• An urban study on the station district (delivered in April 2022). Ambitious study on the fight against urban heat blocks, and integrated into the European program COOL TOWNS.
• A study on the dewatering of public spaces in the city centre (delivered in June 2022), which covered 4 pilot sites. One of these sites is the Laennec car park in front of the Maison du Marais, which was part of the Europan competition sites.
The City is studying the possibility of launching a call for tenders for project management in restricted consultation within the framework of Europan.