Jean Nouvel Will Build La Tour Signal

A few weeks ago, l'EPAD - the government body responsible for developing Paris' La Défense district - announced the completion of an international tender for the construction of a new high-rise tower (La Tour Signal). The project went to Ateliers Jean Nouvel.

The revered French architect (who is the winner of this year's Pritzker Prize in architecture) beat several well-known colleagues including Jacques Ferrier Architectures, Foster+Partners, Studio Libeskind, and Wilmotte et Associés.

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The architects submitted complete projects which stipulated not only the architectural parameters of their proposed buildings, but also how those buildings would be used. Nouvel's project was backed by investors and developers Medea and Layetana.

The winning project's 301-meter tower will be a mixed-use development - it will include 50,000 sq/m of office space, 33,000 sq/m of condos and 20,000 sq/m of retail space. In addition, the building will include a 39,000 sq/m hotel.