jddhjd

Is La Défense about to become the largest university campus in Europe?

undefined undefined 17 mars 2025 undefined 17h00

undefined undefined 17 mars 2025 undefined 17h49

The Editor

© Sergii Figurnyi - Shutterstock

More and more shunned by companies, the famous business district is set to transform by 2050. The goal: to become a welcoming land for French and international students.

If Paris is brimming with streets of thirst – just take a look at the cobblestones of Lappe, Oberkampf (11th), Cannettes (6th), or Mouffetard (5th) on a Friday morning – night owls might just be meeting up at La Défense in a few years to enjoy their youth. The reason? The gradual desertion of the business district and its 3.6 million square meters of office space, affected by the normalization of remote work and the relocation of several big firms, which are now focusing on students to brighten up their image. 


Nearly 14% of office spaces are vacant 

Since Covid-19, La Défense has lost its charm. Planned by the state and built starting in the 1960s as an extension of Paris' historical axis, the area was designed with the model of "one tower, one company", dedicating its spaces to the world of work, with just a few shops to meet the needs of employees, and nothing else around.

The problem is: the pandemic and its series of lockdowns have shaken up the habits of the French regarding remote work, leading many to stay at home one, two, or even three days a week. New habits that are encouraging companies to downsize their spaces, and investors to rethink the organization of the site, as by the third quarter of 2024, the vacancy rate for offices skyrocketed to 13.9%.

And the crisis is set to progress, according to the Institute of Real Estate and Property Savings. 


An Unprecedented Redevelopment Plan 

In this context, five historical investors of La Défense (Allianz, AXA, Groupama, Société Générale, and Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield) presented a broad rescue plan last week. The first project: reconfiguring the spaces around "« education, housing, hospitality, leisure or research centers », explains Cédric de Lestrange, president of the La Défense Users Association (AUDE), to Les Échos. The La Défense park is indeed set to strengthen the existing academic base – 52 higher education institutions – by opening up to the fields of AI, energy transition, and the city of tomorrow.

When we talk about universities, we talk about students&mid .dot;es: the vacant offices should also be used to create 5,000 brand new homes to accommodate people, as well as to house a startup incubator, university library, sports and cultural facilities, and even a shared housing for maximum comfort. This is all part of the vision to become "the largest campus in Europe", a goal openly embraced by investors, to revitalize an economic hub that has seen better days, now in a phase of diversification and greening.