Hotel, sport & offices, Grenoble

The mixed-use development on the Grenoble peninsula comprises a combination of public-access facilities: a hotel, a sports club, a swimming pool, a spa, an indoor-outdoor restaurant, a conference centre, offices and co-working spaces. The elliptical façade – dictated by the urban context and the design competition – presented a further constraint, adding to the site’s complexity, which was already complicated by the presence of the SNCF railway line on one side and the tram tracks on the other, as well as seismic considerations in this flood-prone area. Its layout on the square therefore aligns, first and foremost, with 2Portzamparc’s vision for the entrance to the Presqu’île. Architecturally, it forms an integral part of the overall scheme devised by the urban planner to structure the new central hub around Mandela Square, framed by two curved buildings. The building is characterised by a high degree of geometric regularity and, facing the Alpine massifs, by a unified grid of light-coloured concrete. Constructed from concrete and timber, it houses offices and hotel rooms set on acoustic spring-loaded bases. Its penthouse is built with a timber frame. It offers the restaurant a panoramic view, making it a new destination in Grenoble.