Villagexpo circular in Saint-Michel-sur-Orge

Start at the roundabout by the former Maison des Associations, Rue de la Noue-Rousseau.

(S/E) Take Allée de la Bouloie and turn immediately right onto the path that runs between two rows of trees.

(1) At the end, go round the embankment and stop to admire the street art mural painted on the tennis practice wall. Take the path to the left of the wall and go round the tennis courts.

(2) Once behind the tennis courts, you’ll spot a rare new variety of tree: the 5G antenna tree.

Go round the embankment and take the Allée des Mares-Yvon on the left. Continue to the bend, then turn left onto the Villagexpo footpath just before a copse of pine trees and follow it until you come to a turnstile on your right.

Turn left onto the path that runs alongside a white wall. The houses on this square are decorated with pebbles and have panelling on their upper sections. Then cross the Allée des Thuyas and follow the path opposite which runs to the right of the house at No. 10. At the junction, turn right. In the square, cross the old playground and take the path that continues between the houses.

At the end of the path, turn right into Allée des Pommiers en Fleurs, then left into Allée des Thuyas. At the end, turn right into Rue de la Mare des Bordes and immediately left into Allée des Érables.

(3) Turn left onto Allée des Prunus. Stop at number 11 to look at the inscriptions on the walls to the left and right of the house: you will see ‘Saint-Michel/Orge’ written there. The façades of the houses on this street all feature stone inlays, mosaics and small columns.

At the end of the street, turn right twice onto Rue de la Mare des Bordes. Then take the path that branches off to the right between the pine trees and admire the mosaics on the rear façades of the houses. Follow the path to the end of the tennis courts. Then take the hairpin bend to the left.

(4) You’ll come out onto Place des Cèdres, with a pergola covered in old ivy on your left. Turn right onto Allée des Cèdres and follow it to the end. As you walk, admire the houses with their wooden doors painted with black and white triangles.

You’ll reach Allée des Peupliers, which you’ll take on your left. Walk past the schools, then cross Rue de la Mare des Bordes at the pedestrian crossing and take Allée des Pins opposite.

At the end of Allée des Pins, turn right onto Allée des Marronniers and continue along the path opposite, between the signs for ‘Allée des Lauriers’ and ‘Allée des Marronniers’. At the junction, turn left and you’ll come out onto Place des Lauriers.

Take the path on your right between the houses to reach Place du Bosquet. Take Allée des Lauriers opposite and, at the end, turn right into Rue des Sorbiers. At No. 12, opposite Rue des Jonquilles, take the path on your right and continue straight ahead.

The path crosses a green space with a children’s playground. Continue along the path, passing between the white houses, until you emerge between two garages onto Rue des Fleurs, which you’ll take on your right. At the junction with Rue des Gentiane, continue left onto Rue des Fleurs.

At the end of the street, after a block of garages, near the communal TV aerial, take the path on the left which leads onto Allée de la Bouloie; turn left onto this. Continue straight on until you reach the starting roundabout (S/E).

The Villagexpo in Saint-Michel-sur-Orge illustrates the Pompidou government’s commitment, in the mid-1960s, to enabling everyone to become homeowners and to live in pleasant surroundings.

Construction of the first phase began in 1966, following a national design competition. Around twenty teams comprising designers and builders were selected to construct 184 detached houses, a 950 m² reception hall, a four-classroom school and two teachers’ flats – all within 110 days!

The reception hall and the school were designed by the architect Jean Prouvé.

In the years that followed, two further phases were built, bringing the total number of homes to 360. These homes, which house around 1,000 people, are arranged in clusters, each one different from the others. Some feature roof terraces, others have internal gardens, clad in wooden panelling or a kind of mosaic...