La Première Rue Association Action: an Integral Part of Unité d’Habitation’s History in Briey-en-Forêt

Résumé En

Of the five Unités d’habitation, Briey-en-Forêt has undergone the most changes since its construction. The unit was closed in 1983 and finally saved in the following years, thanks to the transformation of the northern part into a School of Nursing. After these alterations, in 1989, La Première Rue association was created, and played a fundamental role in enhancing this heritage, but even more in the renovation in 1990-1991 of the first rue intérieure, which is one of the unit's six interior streets. The project was to preserve as much as possible of what could be saved and re-used, but also, in the words of its chairperson, Ron Kenley, to “live the architecture of the place through the intervention itself, which has attempted an adaptation, or even a recovery”. Twenty years later, the co-ownership body launched a new renovation project, in which several institutions played a role in the decisions. Since the first street is listed as a historical monument, the Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (DRAC) had to make recommendations. The Le Corbusier Foundation, for its part, retains the moral rights on the work and is systematically informed of projects on Le Corbusier’s constructions. Finally, La Première Rue association, which has been involved in the development of the site for 25 years, conserves the memory of its activities. The main points that gave rise to discussion concerned the colorimetry of the wooden panels and the Bulgomme floor covering.