Entrée de ville – Saint-Paul
In progress since 2013
Client : SEDRE
Project management team :
Commissioning urban planner : Groupe signes
Architect and urban planner : Atelier Philippe Madec// (APM) & ASSOCIES
BET : Artelia
Ligthing : Scène Publique
Cost : 7.8M€ excluding VAT Full project management
Photo credit : © A. Diss
What role does lighting play in an urban project of this scale?
« The lighting project must respond to two fundamental challenges of a sustainable urban project: offering residents and visitors high-quality, comfortable and attractive night-time spaces, while controlling its impact on the environment as far as possible. » – Agathe Argod
Saint-Paul is one of France’s largest municipalities, located on the west coast of Réunion Island. Its vitality means that we need to think about the development of its urban fabric in general, and the entrance to the town in particular.
The shopping mall is the main focus of the development. We are proposing to create a warm, unique and friendly atmosphere to give it a special identity. The lighting is emblematic of the night-time ambience of the entire development.
On Reunion Island, night falls at 6pm all year round. The bright, colourful lighting from dusk until the shops close at 9pm is then replaced by a soft white light. The same furniture is used throughout the store. Diode optics direct the light precisely towards the ground, reducing light pollution.
At the interface between the Route des Tamarins, the Chaussée Royale and the bus station, and in the immediate vicinity of the city’s hypercentre, the gateway to Saint-Paul is set to become a new hub combining culture, commerce and housing. As part of the PRU (urban renewal project), this new urban space will enhance the appeal of the town centre with an open-air shopping centre, services and 400 homes organised around a pedestrian mall.
What lighting furniture have you chosen?
“We worked on a range of square masts, available in two heights. The first, at 6 metres, is dedicated to the shopping mall, with small RGBW LED spotlights for dynamic coloured lighting. The second, 4 metres high, is dedicated to the pedestrian walkways and streets adjacent to the mall: the lighting is white. Particular attention was paid to the calculation of the masts, as we are in a hurricane zone. The thickness of the steel is therefore important… In addition to hot-dip galvanising, the masts have been powder-coated to resist corrosion.” – Agathe Argod
