New Trousseau Hospital, CHU Tours

The Trousseau hospital was built in the 70s, “in the countryside”, between the municipalities of Saint-Avertin and Chambray-lès-Tours, whose populations have more than doubled in the last four decades. By 2040, the site will host a 200,000 m² cluster of activities from the University Hospital and the Faculty of Medicine, on a 40 hectares university/hospital campus home to 10,000 jobs and thousands of students and patients. It is a new beginning for the medical community. Thanks to an easiness of use that takes into account the potential swift evolution of practices, but also thanks to the ergonomy of its functionalities and its flows, that tend to favour proximity and seamless exchanges. More than a basic campus equipped with powerful and innovative hospital functionalities, urban planning gives life to a true piece of the city. Connected to neighbouring municipalities via a tramway, we are in the presence of a new scalable neighbourhood, unmarred by heavy traffic, with crosscutting urban designs and ubiquitous green spaces. The ambition is to preserve the qualities of the landscape and to bring nature as close to the user as possible. Conceptually, the architects have drawn inspiration from the local heritage of Renaissance castle and gardens. Two parks frame the site on the North and the South and a mall ties them together. This mall is a vast avenue around which islets and buildings emerge, interspersed with gardens. Nature is the guiding principle of the project. It represents the crucial breath of life that is of paramount importance for health and wellbeing. The urban, landscape and architectural project will be spread out on 22 years: two main steps (2026 et 2040) and staggered operations will formulate the spatial junctions, and ensure the continuity of healthcare, teaching and research.