In the ever-changing district know as Joliette, this building with its white façades reflecting the light of the South, is part of the Euroméditerranée urban project, which has been underway in Marseille for around the past ten years. Located on the corner of the docks and the new square which opens out onto the port, the building is home to two hotels, as well as offices, and several shops. It is the last in a row of three new buildings, different from its two glass-clad neighbours by its opaque façade. This opaqueness is what traditonally protects the inside from the sun in the Mediterranean region. The oblique window are of varying shpaes, and allow the white concrete façade surfaces to circulate. The design gives the building a dynamic feel and architectural identity. In Marseille, not far form Norhtern Africa, the effect recalls the Ksar, or Moroccan citadels built of earth, with their high mysterious walls pierced with thin openings. Like the walls of the citdels, the white concrete, poured on site, can be placed freely to organise the openings of the building as desired. In its raw form, its surface matter and colour express their character through the tickness of the concrete. On the ground floor, shops and restaurants are designed like independent curved boxes in between which passers by can walk from the square to the port of Marseille on the other side of the boulevard.