Beyond the Walls

Walking the streets of Paris reveals hidden gems tucked away around every corner. Cafés, parks, boutiques, museums and historical sites exist in abundance in all of Paris’s arrondissements. But the city is not only full of gems, it is also full of people. With 2.2 million inhabitants living within the city limits, Paris is one of the world’s most densely populated capitals and number one in Europe.

One of the main reasons for overcrowding within the city is the border of the 75 area code which separates the center from the peripheral suburbs. While big cities like London expand outwards seamlessly, the Paris city limit stays put, and the communes outside of it have a reputation for being poorer, shabbier, maybe even not “Parisian” enough. However, as Paris heads toward full population and housing capacity, expansion into the peripheral areas has become unavoidable.

In 2007, then-president Nicolas Sarkozy announced a project to develop Grand Paris, which includes the city center but focuses on its outskirts. The goals of the ongoing project are to improve transportation as well as the economy and living conditions in the suburbs surrounding Paris. Since then, plans have been proposed for new metro lines that will connect the city to its neighboring towns. Communes around the periphery have also begun their own projects of building housing, offices and jobs, as well as improving public spaces to attract new citizens that want to settle in proximity to the inner circle of the capital.

Some are concerned that this urban development will force out old culture and gentrify the areas touched by the project. Regardless, the expansion of Paris is more or less inevitable. The population keeps growing and the option to building higher isn’t possible without compromising the characteristic Parisian architecture.

Whatever your take is on the expansion, Grand Paris development is already underway. As of now, the suburbs still have much of their spirit. I visited Pantin and Aubervilliers in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, where development has begun, to give you a look into one of the most interesting areas in the Grand Paris.

Pantin

Pantin was originally an industrial area used for production and transportation but has changed greatly over the last decades. After the meat and textile production that dominated the city moved further away from Paris in the late 20th century, empty factories and other industrial buildings were left behind. Today, these buildings are gradually finding new inhabitants and being turned into theaters, concert venues, galleries, offices and apartments.

There is a lot to do in Pantin, depending on your interests. On a nice day, you can walk along the canal down to Parc de la Villette and admire street art, stop at cafés and get a glimpse of leisure suburban life on the way. If you want to take a pit stop, Dock B, a bar and cultural center that hosts a wide array of events, does a great job of capturing the essence of Pantin.

This restaurant and bar is located by the canal in the Magasins Généraux, a newly renovated industrial building that used to be a graffiti-covered ruin. Today, it contains the offices of a variety of creative companies as well as an event hall and the Dock B restaurant. The inside of Dock B has a chic hipster vibe, while the outdoor seating area is simply a stack of deck chairs. Traces of old train tracks are still visible in the square in front of it.

Outside of Dock B, you can see the canal to your right while run-down, graffiti-decorated buildings on your left juxtapose the new creative space. You can take in the old, the really old and the new Pantin all at once.

If you want to check out the emerging arts scene in Pantin, there are plenty of options. Famous gallerist Thaddaeus Ropac has a gallery dedicated to large scale artwork and sculptures located in an old industrial space by the RER tracks, a ten-minute walk east along the main road from Gare de Pantin. The gallery hosts a diverse range of artists, including an exhibition of paintings by Pakistani artist Imran Qureshi running from May 19 to July 27, 2019. Outside of the gallery there is a nice seating area and a café, making it a relaxing spot to hang out even if giant sculptures are not your thing.

If you are interested in music, Le Dynamo de Banlieues Blues should not be missed. It is a beautiful small venue focusing on experimental music like jazz, instrumental improvisation and more, making every show unique. This scene is located in the north of Pantin, only a few minutes from the metro stop Quatre Chemins on line 7. With the city of Pantin’s proximity to Parc de la Villette which is packed with concert venues like Le Trabendo and Le Zénith, it is likely that more interesting scenes will appear in Pantin as the area continues to develop.

Lastly, if beer is at the top of your list, you should definitely stop by the Gallia brewery. This combined bar and brewery located on Rue Méhul in the south of Pantin produces all of their own beer. They have everything from IPAs to blondes to stout beers, and you can try each one out at the bar. They also offer tours of the brewery itself to see how they are made. Though currently closed for renovation, Gallia is expected to reopen in the early summer.

Depending on your location of choice, Pantin can be reached by metro on the lines 5 and 7 and by the RER E. The latter runs horizontally through the Pantin map, right above the Canal de l’Ourcq dividing the commune’s northern and southern halves. This divide marks a visible economic difference between the two parts. With some exceptions, most of the best spots that have popped up in Pantin so far are located south of the railway.

Aubervilliers

In the North, Pantin is connected to the neighboring commune of Aubervilliers. The two towns have grown together, now sharing the central area of Quatre Chemins, and they share a multicultural suburban identity. Aubervilliers has not yet experienced the level of gentrification of Pantin, but with the cities extensive plans to upgrade and transform the central Quatre Chemins area, this could change in the near future. Development of the area is funded through the French “Nouveau Programme de National de Renouvellement Urbain” and its planning has been going on for more than a decade.

It is important to note that this area is not the safest place to travel alone at night, but don’t let this discourage you from visiting the vibrant area. Just bring a couple of friends with you because there are some interesting spots to check out in Aubervilliers. One of them is the outdoor concert scene and club concept, La Station, that has opened up in a closed down charcoal station right above Porte de Aubervilliers on the Paris city limit. The project is run by Le Collectif MU, a company focusing on art and expression and urban development, and here you can discover underground artists across genres.

Aubervilliers is also a cool place to just have a walk around and look at suburban life. While a lot less polished than Paris and the south of Pantin, the small-town pace of your surroundings is a pleasant break from the big city, and there is so much charm in little details like houses with wooden window shutters, beautiful street art, foreign supermarkets and restaurants.

While most communes on the Paris periphery are developing, with new housing being built to meet new demands from an expanding Paris, the north-east area has something special. With the new cultural influences that take root using the cities’ industrial past as a foundation for urban development, Pantin currently has a unique mix of locals and their traditions, Parisian families and fresh young creativity, with Aubervilliers likely following in its footsteps.

Pantin is in many ways a classic case of gentrification, but as of right now, there is still a mix between the old and the new. As Gaella Gueraini, a local woman, put it, “People who come from this place give a spirit in the new culture.” As the area is developing day by day, it might just be that the best time to visit Pantin and its neighboring suburbs is right now.

Written and Photographed by Sofie Granberg