Tour Montparnasse
Tour Maine-Montparnasse (Maine-Montparnasse Tower), also commonly named Tour Montparnasse, is a 210-metre (689 ft) office skyscraper located in the Montparnasse area of Paris, France. Constructed from 1969 to 1973, it was the tallest skyscraper in France until 2011, when it was surpassed by the 231-metre (758 ft) Tour First. As of March 2017[update], it is the 14th tallest building in the European Union. The tower was designed by architects Eugène Beaudouin, Urbain Cassan, and Louis Hoym de Marien and built by Campenon Bernard.[5] On September 21, 2017, Nouvelle AOM won a competition to redesign the building's facade.[citation needed]
Tour Maine-Montparnasse (Maine-Montparnasse Tower), also commonly named Tour Montparnasse, is a 210-metre (689 ft) office skyscraper located in the Montparnasse area of Paris, France. Constructed from 1969 to 1973, it was the tallest skyscraper in France until 2011, when it was surpassed by the 231-metre (758 ft) Tour First. As of March 2017[update], it is the 14th tallest building in the European Union. The tower was designed by architects Eugène Beaudouin, Urbain Cassan, and Louis Hoym de Marien and built by Campenon Bernard.[5] On September 21, 2017, Nouvelle AOM won a competition to redesign the building's facade.[citation needed]
Built on top of the Montparnasse – Bienvenüe Paris Métro station, the 59 floors of the tower are mainly occupied by offices.
The 56th floor, 200 meters from the ground,[6] houses a restaurant called le Ciel de Paris,[7] and the terrace on the top floor, are open to the public for viewing the city.
The view covers a radius of 40 km (25 mi); aircraft can be seen taking off from Orly Airport.
The guard rail, to which various antennae are attached, can be pneumatically lowered.
Various companies and organizations have setteled in the tower:
The 56th floor, with its terrace, bars and restaurant, has been used for private or public events. During the 80s and 90s, the live National Lottery was cast on TF1 from the 56th floor.
In 1995, French urban climber Alain "Spiderman" Robert, using only his bare hands and feet and with no safety devices of any kind, scaled the building's exterior glass and steel wall to the top, almost falling in the process.[citation needed]
The tower's simple architecture, large proportions and monolithic appearance have been often criticised for being out of place in Paris's urban landscape.[8] As a result, two years after its completion the construction of buildings over seven stories high in the city centre was banned.[9]
The design of the tower predates architectural trends of more modern skyscrapers today that are often designed to provide a window for every office. Only the offices around the perimeter of each floor of Tour Montparnasse have windows.
It is said that the tower's observation deck enjoys the most beautiful view in all of Paris, because it is the only place from which the tower cannot be seen.[10]
A 2008 poll of editors on Virtualtourist voted the building the second-ugliest building in the world, behind Boston City Hall in the United States.[11]
In 2005, studies showed that the tower contained asbestos material. When inhaled, for instance during repairs, asbestos is a carcinogen. As with the Jussieu Campus, the problem of removing the asbestos material from a large building used by thousands of people is acute. Projected completion times for removal are three years if the building is emptied for the duration of the work and ten years if the building is not emptied. The removal of asbestos began in July 2007.[citation needed]
Previously Tour Maine-Montparnasse housed the executive management of Accor.[12]
Tour Montparnasse's location in Paris
Office reception hall of Tour Montparnasse
Shopping Arcade of Tour Montparnasse
Tour Montparnasse next to the Eiffel Tower
The Tour Montparnasse seen from the Eiffel Tower
The Tour Montparnasse from the Rue de Rennes
The tower seen from the Jardin du Luxembourg
Night view towards the Eiffel Tower
Tour Montparnasse seen from Arc de Triomphe
Tour Maine-Montparnasse (Maine-Montparnasse Tower), also commonly named Tour Montparnasse, is a 210-metre (689 ft) office skyscraper located in the Montparnasse area of Paris, France. Constructed from 1969 to 1973, it was the tallest skyscraper in France until 2011, when it was surpassed by the 231-metre (758 ft) Tour First. As of March 2017[update], it is the 14th tallest building in the European Union. The tower was designed by architects Eugène Beaudouin, Urbain Cassan, and Louis Hoym de Marien and built by Campenon Bernard.[5] On September 21, 2017, Nouvelle AOM won a competition to redesign the building's facade.[citation needed]
Tour Maine-Montparnasse (Maine-Montparnasse Tower), also commonly named Tour Montparnasse, is a 210-metre (689 ft) office skyscraper located in the Montparnasse area of Paris, France. Constructed from 1969 to 1973, it was the tallest skyscraper in France until 2011, when it was surpassed by the 231-metre (758 ft) Tour First. As of March 2017[update], it is the 14th tallest building in the European Union. The tower was designed by architects Eugène Beaudouin, Urbain Cassan, and Louis Hoym de Marien and built by Campenon Bernard.[5] On September 21, 2017, Nouvelle AOM won a competition to redesign the building's facade.[citation needed]
Built on top of the Montparnasse – Bienvenüe Paris Métro station, the 59 floors of the tower are mainly occupied by offices.
The 56th floor, 200 meters from the ground,[6] houses a restaurant called le Ciel de Paris,[7] and the terrace on the top floor, are open to the public for viewing the city.
The view covers a radius of 40 km (25 mi); aircraft can be seen taking off from Orly Airport.
The guard rail, to which various antennae are attached, can be pneumatically lowered.
Various companies and organizations have setteled in the tower:
The 56th floor, with its terrace, bars and restaurant, has been used for private or public events. During the 80s and 90s, the live National Lottery was cast on TF1 from the 56th floor.
In 1995, French urban climber Alain "Spiderman" Robert, using only his bare hands and feet and with no safety devices of any kind, scaled the building's exterior glass and steel wall to the top, almost falling in the process.[citation needed]
The tower's simple architecture, large proportions and monolithic appearance have been often criticised for being out of place in Paris's urban landscape.[8] As a result, two years after its completion the construction of buildings over seven stories high in the city centre was banned.[9]
The design of the tower predates architectural trends of more modern skyscrapers today that are often designed to provide a window for every office. Only the offices around the perimeter of each floor of Tour Montparnasse have windows.
It is said that the tower's observation deck enjoys the most beautiful view in all of Paris, because it is the only place from which the tower cannot be seen.[10]
A 2008 poll of editors on Virtualtourist voted the building the second-ugliest building in the world, behind Boston City Hall in the United States.[11]
In 2005, studies showed that the tower contained asbestos material. When inhaled, for instance during repairs, asbestos is a carcinogen. As with the Jussieu Campus, the problem of removing the asbestos material from a large building used by thousands of people is acute. Projected completion times for removal are three years if the building is emptied for the duration of the work and ten years if the building is not emptied. The removal of asbestos began in July 2007.[citation needed]
Previously Tour Maine-Montparnasse housed the executive management of Accor.[12]
Tour Montparnasse's location in Paris
Office reception hall of Tour Montparnasse
Shopping Arcade of Tour Montparnasse
Tour Montparnasse next to the Eiffel Tower
The Tour Montparnasse seen from the Eiffel Tower
The Tour Montparnasse from the Rue de Rennes
The tower seen from the Jardin du Luxembourg
Night view towards the Eiffel Tower
Tour Montparnasse seen from Arc de Triomphe
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