French architect picked ahead of Foster, Zaha Hadid and Fuksas to 拢1.79bn job in Bulgarian capital

Dominique Perrault has beaten a star-studded shortlist of architects to design a new city centre in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The French architect, known for his New National Library in Paris, beat fellow shortlisted architects Foster + Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects and Massimiliano Fuksas to the job, which will reportedly carry a budget of around 鈧2bn (拢1.79bn). Bulgarian firms Georgi Stoilov and Adais were also shortlisted.

The new city centre will be the base for several government buildings and state agencies, and will replace a complex of military and industrial buildings.

Construction will not begin before 2011, and is likely to continue for a decade.


Sofia, Bulgaria
Credit:
Streets of the Bulgarian capital