Prairie des Filtres

The Prairie des Filtres stretches as a long, grassy bank along the Garonne River, marked by its wide, unobstructed view of the Pont Neuf. In the nineteenth century, the city built massive sand filtration beds underneath this park to clean the river water for public use. When the city modernized its water supply in the nineteen thirties, the filtration system was buried. Today, the park serves as a public commons, hosting festivals and markets directly above the old, hidden brick reservoirs.