The Ray

Inspired by the topography of the Niçois landscape, whose white stone echoes the stone foundations of the villas perched in the midst of dense vegetation, it recreates the form of a green hill, where vegetation is combined with stone and wood.

It thus constitutes a bridge between the urban and the natural – on the one side, there are the constructions of Boulevard Gorbella, on the other, the vegetation of the park.

The park will enter seamlessly into the city block at the same level.

It will stretch over all of the buildings of our neighborhood, covering the façades and roofs. The façades will host climbing, flowering plants, chosen for their resistance and fragrances. The rooftops will be entirely planted, in the spirit of the Niçois landscape, where a green crest dominates constructions.

A construction in the interior of the city block will be raised and placed on pilotis, in order to broaden and extend the presence of nature. Underneath this garden object, the spaces that have thus been freed up will be accessible and open to the public, for new domestic and leisure activities. 

On the Boulevard Gorbella side, our project presents a truly urban face. The new constructions will be on a similar scale to those of the neighboring Niçois buildings, which they will bear some resemblance to. The city block will thus appear to have been constructed over time, for the smoothest of integrations and optimal continuity. 

In some buildings, the residents will be able to appropriate sections of the balconies with light constructions, such as in unfinished wood, which will allow the buildings in the block to be broken down, lending them a more individualised interpretation of scale that is closer to their use.

Other, smaller elements will introduce shifts in scale: slipped into the city block, they will be sold as bare “lofts” of double height, ready to furnish – a new housing proposal for new populations with new habits.  They are like small elements demonstrating a “desire to reside” that brighten up the façades.

The memory of the Ray Stadium, a federating theme for the residents of Nice, will be conserved. Great sporting figures and the striking events of its history could be the subject of artists’ interventions – images, sculptures or installations...