L'immeuble Molitor is an 8-storey, 15-unit (copropriété) apartment building in the wealthy Paris suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt. It was designed by Le Corbusier and his cousin Pierre Jeanneret, and was constructed between 1931 and 1934. Today, it is one of 16 projects designed by Le Corbusier that are designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. And so if you've at all studied architecture of the 20th century, you know this project. It's canonical. It's also where Le Corbusier and his wife Yvonne Gallis lived for most of their lives until their deaths in 1965 and 1957, respectively. But what they don't teach you in architecture school — and I think it's a shame they don't — is how the project was developed.

The building was developed by la Société Immobilière de Paris Parc des Princes and two promoters (developers) named Marc Kouznetzoff and Guy Noble. They acquired the site right on the border of Paris and Boulogne in 1931 and then asked Le Corbusier and Pierre to design it. But they struggled to obtain the necessary financing and eventually asked the two architects to work their social circles for people who might want to pre-buy apartments in the building. They also wanted to show that avant-garde architecture, of which this firmly was at the time, could be more attractive than traditional architecture.

To that end, here's a marketing poster from that period (which I think is super interesting):

Like the emailers you'd see today, it shows a rendering of the building (with fancy rich-looking people out front), it touts the project's unique location and views, it mentions the architects (by the 1930s, Le Corbusier would have already been an internationally recognized figure), and it promises that the payment structure will be easy. So all in all, not much has changed over the last century when it comes to marketing new apartments: "Move-in today with only 5% down. Don't miss this unique location in the heart of X, with incredible views of Y."

Construction on the project started in February 1932, but it was slow-moving due to financing constraints and a lack of apartment pre-sales. The project was eventually finished in 1934, but then in 1935 the developer went bankrupt. This precipitated a lengthy legal battle in which the ownership of Le Corbusier's own apartment was even called into question. The dispute was not settled until 1949. During this time, the building not surprisingly fell into disrepair, and it would not be until 1950 that a proper renovation would be undertaken. Once again, this is not the story that is typically taught in architecture schools.

Having visited the building this week during Paris Design Week, I can tell you that the common areas feel tired. There's paint peeling in the lobby and the exit stair — which you're required to take to visit Le Corbusier's penthouse apartment — isn't in the best condition. There are tiles missing on the stairs, and the inner courtyard feels a tad grim. At the same time, there are some very nicely appointed apartments in the building that sell/list for over €14,000 per m2. That feels pretty good to me. And so I guess all is well that ends well in the world of architecture and development.