Heavy restructuring of a historic heritage Building on Henri Barbusse street in downtown Marseille
The former Post Office building, located at 19 Henri Barbusse Street in Marseille’s first district, was built in 1938 by architect Auguste Marie Joseph Bluysen, who is also known for his work on the Grand Rex in Paris. This structure was designed to be an annex to the Central Colbert Post Office, which had become overcrowded. This one-of-a-kind structure, designated as a Historic Monument, is fully entwined with the Saint Cannat Church, producing a dramatic contrast between two structures that are completely different in nature.
Arkadea, which was formed by the merger of Icade and Poste Immo, wanted to requalify this G+5 building by generating office activities as well as a coworking space on the ground floor. The overall goal of this project is to remodel the structure in a retro-modern manner that is respectful to Mr. Bluysen’s vision in order to restore its original appearance, which sadly experienced disastrous modifications in the 1990s.
