The Malling Of The Champs-Elysees

With some of the most expensive real estate in the world, chain stores are now dominating the famed Champs-Elysees. Government officials in Paris are developing plans to counter the prevalence of corporate outlets, but some fear it may be too late.

1 minute read

February 4, 2007, 9:00 AM PST

By Mike Lydon

"There was a time when the Champs-Élysées stood for grand living, high style and serendipity. With the Arc de Triomphe on one end and the Tuileries Gardens on the other, you could discover an underground jazz band at midnight and down oysters and Champagne at dawn.

But the road where de Gaulle celebrated France's liberation from the Nazis, the one known as "the most beautiful avenue on earth," has, like Times Square and Oxford Street in London, turned into a commercialized money trap."

FULL STORY: Megastores March Up Avenue, and Paris Takes to Barricades

Tuesday, January 30, 2007 in The New York Times

History / Preservation Land Use Urban Development Europe

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