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It's sometimes imagined as a residential arrondissement. However, the 15th arrondissement has no shortage of nuggets to discover, and its mayor won't deny it. " The uniqueness of the 15th arrondissement lies in its diversity," says Philippe Goujon in our interview.
At the head of the arrondissement since 2008, the mayor shares with us the major projects that have and will transform this area of Western Paris, inviting us to explore its hidden corners and discover the events that punctuate neighborhood life.
Can you tell us a little about yourself?
Philippe Goujon, mayor of the 15th arrondissement: I started out as the youngest member of the Council - I was the youngest elected at the time - but I don't necessarily want to end up the oldest!
I'm a child of the Latin Quarter, where I lived for decades. When you come from the center of Paris, the 15ᵉ arrondissement seems far away, almost off the radar. And yet, it was politics that brought me there, and with time, I can say it without hesitation: the 15ᵉ is an arrondissement of many treasures. Each neighborhood has its own identity. It's a city within a city.
A passionate cinephile, I was perhaps the only elected official in Paris to organize a public meeting in defense of independent movie theaters. Le 15ᵉ used to have several; today, there's only one left: the Chaplin, supported by the mayor's office.
When the Gaumont Convention was threatened with closure for economic reasons, we reacted with other elected representatives by launching a petition. It attracted over 11,000 signatures - a clear demonstration of the attachment of local residents to their local cinemas.
It's swimming time! For the inauguration, I gave it my all: I dived in - and as you can see, I'm doing very well! The Bras de Grenelle site is magnificent, with warm, clear water at the foot of the Eiffel Tower...
I was Jacques Chirac's deputy when he made this ambitious promise: that one day, we'd be able to swim in the Seine again. It was in the Parc Citroën , which slopes gently down to the river. The park had originally been conceived as an urban beach, with the powerful idea of turning the Seine into a place for life and leisure. Jacques Chirac had made it the symbol of a Paris turned towards its river.
I want to pursue this ambition with the development of a second bathing site in the 15ᵉ, precisely at this location.
What are the nuggets to discover in the 15th arrondissement?
La Ruche is a remarkable place that we have supported financially. It is housed in the former Bordeaux wine pavilion, an emblematic building from the 1900 Universal Exhibition. The site now houses an artistic residence and a small exhibition space.
Atelier 11, meanwhile, is the last remaining reminder of the Cité Falguière, once a hotbed of Parisian artistic life, and home to such major figures as Foujita and Soutine. And of course, the recently renovated Musée Bourdelle deserves a special mention: this is the sculptor's former studio, now a museum with a magnificent garden, which now includes a café-restaurant.
As for theaters, we have the Théâtre Monfort and the Théo Théâtre, and for families, the Théâtre Paris Plaine, which offers shows for young audiences and is often packed to capacity.
Since 2008, I've been working on an ambitious multidisciplinary project: the creation of a major cultural center near Parc Georges Brassens, to be known as Carré Brassens-Brancion. This project has just reached a significant milestone with the recovery of 2,000 m² of premises. Part of this space is already occupied by two committed associations: La Source Garouste, which develops educational art projects, and Les Ateliers des artistes en exil, which supports the creative work of refugee artists and offers exhibitions to the public.
A common space is also planned to host exhibitions, rehearsals, performances and cultural events bringing together amateur and professional practitioners from the 15th district.
As far as restaurants are concerned, I've adopted the principle of having lunch every day at an address in the 15th arrondissement. This allows me to make one more contact with the area, to chat with restaurateurs and customers, and to find out what life is like in the neighborhood.
You'll find mainly bistronomy, such as Père Claude, a top-notch rotisserie that has opened a second, smaller address, La Retraite du Père Claude, and gastronomy with very good value for money, such as Pilgrim , which offers French cuisine with Japanese precision and is run by a Japanese family - they too have a second address, Neige d'été, also in the 15th arrondissement.
The ACE15 association organizes the Journées Brassens, every third weekend in October, in the Georges Brassens park. Why this date? Because the weather's always fine on this weekend, and it's the high tides of the equinox. We celebrate French chanson, and of course Georges Brassens! In summer, the association sets up its Lire à Brassens chalet and lends deckchairs so that local residents can read in the shade of the trees in the park.
At the same time, every year we organize open days at the artists' studios, attended by almost a hundred participants. Then there's a more unusual event: Dimanche Sports 15. One Sunday a month, the town hall opens its premises free of charge to sports enthusiasts. In this atypical setting, you can try your hand at ping-pong, archery and other disciplines, all in a friendly atmosphere.
During the Covid crisis, a small team and I set up a commando unit to transform the town hall into an anti-Covid center. The result: over 250,000 people were vaccinated. As a matter of urgency, I went to school canteens to collect charlottes, gowns and gloves and give them to doctors at the Pompidou and Necker hospitals, which were short of equipment at the time.
I also invested in 3D printers to produce high-protection visors for surgeons, as well as around twenty sewing machines. I then mobilized volunteer seamstresses from the 15ᵉ arrondissement, who made masks (over 300,000). Finally, a partnership with a pharmacy enabled us to make hydroalcoholic gel and soap on a daily basis, which were distributed free of charge.
I'm very proud of what we've achieved collectively during this difficult period.
I think the towns I work with, which border the 15th arrondissement, are doing a fantastic job. Vanves, Issy-les-Moulineaux, Boulogne... Towns you want to live in!
We're carrying out a major urban planning project around the Aquaboulevard, which will be completely rebuilt. It has to be said that, in its current state, it's one of Europe's biggest heatwasters - it's about time we took action!
A vast urban planning operation was also approved at the last Paris Council meeting, involving a 9-hectare redevelopment project between rue de Rennes and avenue du Maine, which will involve the complete deconstruction of the Montparnasse Tower in order to rebuild it. Interior work will begin this year, and the tower will be deconstructed over the course of next year. The aim is to turn it into a tower with a green house at the top, to produce fruit and vegetables. The demineralization of the Gare Montparnasse forecourt is also planned, with the planting of 1,000 to 2,000 trees.
In July 2025, we're also inaugurating a new 600-meter section of the petite ceinture, which brings me to my big green idea: the creation of a green arc in the heart of the 15th arrondissement, in the shape of a horseshoe, which would cross the entire arrondissement over eight and a half kilometers. It would run from Parc Georges Brassens to Parc Citroën. It would then be the largest in Paris.
