Parvis de Notre-Dame de Paris: the former underground parking lot transformed into an indoor promenade

As the days go by, the reopening of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris draws ever closer. After more than five and a half years of restoration work, the famous Parisian edifice will once again be able to welcome visitors from December 8, 2024. A moment that many are eagerly awaiting, following the fire on April 15, 2019.

However, you'll have to wait a little longer to discover the redevelopment of the square in front of Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral. These works are due to start in autumn 2025 and are scheduled for completion in 2028, according to the City of Paris website. " The aim of this vast project is to bring Parisians back to the birthplace of Paris, and to welcome a large number of visitors (between 14 and 15 million each year) in better conditions. It had been the subject of a deliberation voted on April 15, 2021 by the Paris Council, two years after the terrible fire that ravaged the building," adds Paris City Hall.

Announced in June 2022, the winning project for the redevelopment of the cathedral's surroundings is that of the team led by landscape architect Bas Smets, with the GRAU architectural and urban planning firm. The heritage component has been entrusted to the Neufville-Gayet architectural firm.

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For this new forecourt, " designed as a clearing ", a number of features have been imagined, including the creation of a " large, continuous square between the chevet and the Seine ".

Another major project? The underground parking lot beneath the forecourt of Notre-Dame de Paris will be transformed into an " interior promenade ". Here, visitors will soon be able to discover 3,000 m² of new experiences, including a bookshop, café, sanitary facilities, luggage storage and new access to the archaeological crypt.

Serving as both a climatic shelter and a reception area, this new underground development will also offer new views of the cathedral.

So, are you looking forward to discovering these new developments aroundNotre-Dame de Paris Cathedral? If all goes according to plan, they should be unveiled to Parisians by 2028.