Costly Flaws Plague Many Grand Parisian Projects

From a cracked facade that dropped granite slabs at the Opera Bastille to a sewage leak in the orchestra pit at the Cite de la Musique, some dream projects in Paris are turning into architectural nightmares.

Defects plague many of the public buildings commissioned by President Francois Mitterrand during his 14 years in office.

The “Grand Projects,” including the elegant glass pyramid at the Louvre, were to be Mitterrand’s legacy to the French capital--ultramodern designs fitted with state-of-the-art technology.

But although the pyramid has fared well, glitches are cropping up elsewhere.

The facades of the Grande Arche de la Defense, the giant cube-shaped office building on the edge of Paris, and the Opera Bastille are swathed in steel netting to protect passersby.

Experts concluded that the Bastille’s fissures are the result of wear and tear, which was alarming to taxpayers who underwrote the 7-year-old building’s $560-million cost.

Repairing the Grande Arche’s exterior of 35,000 slabs of fine Carrara marble looms as another costly project. A report on the extent of the damage, responsibility and repair costs is expected before the end of the year.

The Cite de la Musique at La Villette, on the northern edge of Paris, has been battling bad plumbing since it opened in 1991. Air conditioning, hardwood floors and wall paint had to be redone after waste water rose in pipes lining the orchestra pit.

The facility also suffered from technology so sophisticated that few could make it work. Besides a $50-million sliding roof that baffled technicians, crackling sounds marred many concerts every time the lights dimmed.

Meanwhile, water problems caused new wood floors to buckle and condensation to form on the windows of showrooms planned to house a collection of Stradivarius violins.

And not just Mitterrand’s projects are having problems.

The 19-year-old Pompidou Center, named for the late President Georges Pompidou, is also undergoing a costly overhaul to repair leaks and rust damage that have tarnished its brightly colored exterior.

The multipurpose cultural facility in the heart of Paris is a victim of its own success. Designed to handle 7,000 visitors daily, it welcomes more than 25,000.

Renovations costing $80 million may force the center to close next fall, news reports have said.

“It takes between 20 and 30 years before a new building irons out its wrinkles,” said Laurent Villcoque, a Paris architect. “The only way to reduce the risks is to use the best materials.”