Between the future events venue and the Halle du Boulingrin, the city is including major urban facilities in a coherent development scheme. Close to road and rail infrastructures and opening onto rap-idly changing urban areas, this powerful and decisive contemporary development places the new sports center at the intersection of the city center and the large-scale urban transformations in progress. The new facility will look out over the city while protecting the pri-vacy of swimmers. We want to provide a generous interpretation of the sports center: open, visible and welcoming when seen from the Boulevard Joffre and connected to the plaza of the future Palais des Congrès. The different components—water sports, indoor sports and skating rinks—, are arranged around a common area, a three-storey lobby with huge windows looking out to the city. The building will also be a powerful presence when viewed from the Boulevard Laon inter-section. We placed the building atop a base containing the machine rooms in order to protect swimmers’ privacy and to provide views of the city from the pool area. The facility forms an integral part of the on-going urban development scheme.