Place Lafayette

Place Lafayette in Issy-les-Moulineaux stands at the heart of an area that has undergone a radical transformation. For much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, this specific zone functioned as a dense, industrial hub, defined by heavy manufacturing and pollution. During that industrial era, the neighborhood housed major factories, including the Gévelot munitions plant and the La Manufacture des tabacs tobacco company. The landscape was defined by the relentless work of these facilities rather than the office buildings and residential blocks that define the area today. The transition from an industrial center to its current form began in earnest during the nineteen eighties. Planners and developers systematically replaced the old, polluting structures with modern office spaces and contemporary housing. This shift effectively scrubbed the area of its factory-heavy past, turning it into the modern, service-oriented district you see now.