École d’Application de l’Infanterie
A Mediterrenean Habitat
The overall project has a common ambition: to make EAI part of the urban history of Montpellier, by offering an alternative to urban sprawl by creating a mixed neighborhood, pleasant to live in, open to the city, and exemplary of a Mediterranean identity from Montpellier. Co-producer of the Place d'Armes, this site is an opportunity to promote a collective and rich ambition in terms of programming, architectural quality, and urbanity. Due to the thickness of the building, two generous patios are strategically located in the building to allow for the significant amount of light. Their precise position offers an open perspective towards the existing buildings to the rear, thus connecting the sky, the new and the old. The composition of the building forms a unitary and simple whole. The general volume of the building takes the shape of a “U”. Two porches directly above these patios cross the building on the ground floor, where several activity rooms are present. The shops, accessible directly from the Place d'Armes, are positioned at each end of the “U”, as well as in the heart of the “U” activating the facades. The architecture of the building is largely imbued with vegetation, which helps to unify the whole of the plaza of arms already vegetated at its heart.
