"During a presentation to the press held at Paris City Hall on January 7, 2026, architect and Pritzker Prize laureate Renzo Piano released the first images of the transformation of Montparnasse's emblematic shopping center and CIT Tower into a pedestrian-focused district in Paris, France. The project, commissioned to Renzo Piano Building Workshop (RPBW) in 2022 by the co-owners of the commercial complex, proposes both a visual and functional transformation of the 1970s low-rise retail development into a more traversable space characterized by transparency and openness."
"The commercial complex, known in French as the Ensemble Immobilier Tour Maine-Montparnasse (EITMM), dates from Paris's 1970s "slab urbanism," characterized by inward-facing retail and the separation of pedestrian and vehicular circulation through raised concrete platforms. Built between 1969 and 1973 by AOM on the former Montparnasse train station site, the ensemble is composed of three distinct elements: the Montparnasse Tower, the commercial center, and the CIT Tower, which sits above the retail slab."
"The design was developed in parallel with the redevelopment of the Montparnasse Tower, led by Nouvelle AOM, to reshape the broader tertiary complex into a contemporary Parisian block oriented toward public life, environmental performance, and everyday use. The project reopens the site to the city, reconnecting streets and restoring continuity between Montparnasse and its surrounding neighborhoods through new public spaces."
Renzo Piano's design transforms Montparnasse's 1970s commercial slab and CIT Tower into a pedestrian-focused, open district prioritizing transparency and traversability. The intervention reopens the block to surrounding streets, restores continuity with neighboring areas, and creates new public spaces. The work builds on the Ensemble Immobilier Tour Maine-Montparnasse, composed of the Montparnasse Tower, the commercial center, and the CIT Tower above a retail slab built between 1969 and 1973. The design was developed alongside the Montparnasse Tower redevelopment led by Nouvelle AOM and aims to enhance public life and environmental performance. Initial design work began in 2022, paused in 2023, and resumed in 2025.
Read at ArchDaily
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