The New Village of Gassin

Hannibal Square in Châteauneuf is the heart of the new village of Gassin, created in the 1990s by François Spoerry, the creator of the lakeside town of Port Grimaud. This extension received an architectural award for its excellence.

In the late 1980s, the old village of Gassin was becoming depopulated as people moved to the plains, particularly the Foux district. Mayor Robert Dho, seeking to revitalize the village and ensure its continuity, commissioned François Spoerry to design it. Awarded a Marianne d'Or in 1995 and the Philippe Rotthier European Architecture Prize, the modern village of Gassin extends south of the medieval village.
This new village project has succeeded in its goal of reviving Gassin.

The architect, world-renowned for his design of the Port-Grimaud marina, the "Venice of Provence" built between 1966 and 2000, conceived an extension of the village including individual houses, apartment buildings, but also a social housing complex, shops and an expansion of the elementary school.

In total, 124 harmoniously arranged dwellings, perfectly integrated into the old village. The foundation stone was laid on March 1, 1989, and the new village of Gassin was inaugurated on September 10, 1993. This exemplary achievement earned its designer a nomination for the prestigious "Prince of Wales Award" awarded by the Harvard University Academy and, in 1998, the "European Prize for Urban Reconstruction" from the Philippe Rotthier Foundation.

Hannibal Square in Châteauneuf owes its name to a former lord of Gassin. In 1639, he sold his Bertaud castle, which now belongs to Naval Group, to the Castellane family. He was the last to bear his name, as he had two daughters who married.