4 unités LC - Architecture Insights

The Parkland
The Entry Foyer
The parkland at the base of the building includes a small children’s
playground (a more recent addition), a soccer field, volleyball and
basketball courts, and even a small artificial lake – the most
distinguishing feature of this particular ‘Unité’. The use and
upkeep of these facilities is ensured by the building co-operative
run clubs for each of the sports involved. 14
The lake of the ‘Unité’, at the base of the south end pilotis, is
presently in a clean condition and even supports a natural fish and
wildlife population, providing a popular recreational fishing spot
for the inhabitants. 15 Problems regarding the disposal of waste and
rubbish in the lake were previously experienced, but these appear
to have been effectively eliminated thanks to the efficiency and
effectiveness of the building co-operative. 16
A small post office is located in the entry foyer of the building and
is open every afternoon, from Monday to Saturday. It is a useful
facility, but provides few benefits other than shear, and possibly
unnecessary, convenience 17 . It services only the residents of the
building, being set well away from the general public in the interior
of the ‘Unité’. If anything, the inclusion of this service is simply
supports a sense of isolation experienced by these inhabitants of a
proud but rather insular community. 18
A concierge office, opposite the post office in the entry foyer, is
provided to inform the occasional visitors that the building
receives. The office was originally a small bookshop and
newsagent run by one of the building’s residents, but a successive
owner could not be found when the first owner passed away, and
so this service no longer exists. The post office is the sole
remainder of the building’s internal commercial activity.
147 148
Co-operative Services
In addition to the clubs and group activities (mentioned earlier) that
the co-operative organises, communal picnics are also often
arranged to encourage social interaction between the building’s
inhabitants. 19 These social activities arranged by the co-operative
promote a greater sense of belonging for the inhabitants of the
‘Unité’, establishing friendships with in the community that have
played an integral role in binding the families of this ‘Unité’ to their
homes. 20
A bi-monthly newsletter called Ici Corbu is also written and
published by the co-operative of the ‘Unité’ in Rezé to notify the
residents of any up and coming events or general building
community related news. The newsletter has equally provided the
co-operative with a means of educating the residents as to the
design and history of their building and it’s architect, promoting
the ideas upon which the building was based, and proliferating a
notion of pride and solidarity with in the building’s community. 21
The building co-operative for the ‘Unité’ of Rezé is particularly
active thanks to some of the older long-term residents of the
building that are extremely proud of their habitat. 22 These residents
have dedicated a large part of their lives to the maintenance and
continued efficient functioning of the ‘Unité’ in Rezé, and it is
thanks to them that building has remained in such a stable
condition over the many years since its construction.
88. Le Corbusier’s poem and
symbol of ‘La Main Ouverte’
(The Open Hand), that were
pictured in an edition of the cooperative
newsletter Ici Corbu
– an illustration to the ‘Unité’
residents of the humanist
aspirations of their building’s
architect.