Located in the Orée du Golf Joint Development Zone (ZAC), in Épron—north of Caen—the project is set on an adjoining plot situated between a residential neighborhood of the town of Hérouville-Saint-Clair and the Boulevard Urbain Nord, a new road connecting Caen to the sea.
The project therefore sits at the junction between the planned ZAC urban development and the individual houses of the neighboring municipality.
The program offers a dual function: the creation of a large multi-sport athletic hall combined with work and seminar spaces available for rental. The building is derived from a base volume that has been shaped according to its surrounding environment:
To the west, along the new road, the more urban façade is punctuated by large full-height metal frames, giving the building a kinetic and dynamic appearance. To the east, facing the housing development, a series of stepped façade volumes breaks the massing into several planes while reducing the perceived height.
The south façade features a cantilevered volume marking the entrance to the sports complex. Acting as an urban-scale landmark, it signals the building while echoing the adjacent residential area.
Overall, the façades follow an irregular grid alternating solid and void surfaces as well as varying materials. Vertical and horizontal lines emerge on the façades, adding dynamism and subdividing the main volume. Shiny ribbed cladding, which plays with light and atmospheres, is used in alternation with glazed curtain walls or polycarbonate panels.
The scale of the program and the volumes required, combined with the urban context in which the project is situated, call for a range of architectural strategies adapted to its environment. Text description by the architects.
