With the strong urban development of the town, which took place between the end of the fifties and the sixties, the international language was established in the architecture of Lebanon in a consistent and preponderant way. This development is manifested above all with the creation of new neighborhoods and residential centers outside the old urban centers, and particularly affects the coastal cities (Sidon, Byblos, Tripoli) and the capital Beirut. This is to be related to the country’s economic growth, linked to trade and relations between the West and the Middle East, due to the geographical position of the Lebanon and its historical history as a former French colony.
According to Nexticle.net, the international perspective thus acquires relevance gradually, highlighting itself in particular in the west of Beirut, in the field of public buildings. The city becomes the seat of international bodies with the construction of the buildings of UNESCO, FAO and UNRRA, and is qualified with numerous administrative buildings, with banks (Bank of Beirut for Commerce, arch. Saqr Faẖrī; Arab Bank, ing. Nazīh Ṭālib), hotels (Hotel le Vendôme, ing. H̱atīb and ῾Alāmih, damaged by the war and later reactivated; Hotel Biarritz) and shopping centers (Centro Sausalito al-Ašrafiyya, arch. Fāhī Afādīsiyān, R. Micaelian, 1974-78). Other interventions to remember are still the Amliè school center (arch. Ḥuǧayl, 1957); the Protestant College (arch. M. Ecochard, C. Lecoeur, 1957); the hospital complex of American University of Beirut (ing. Dār al-Handasa Nazīh Ṭālib, 1970-74), equipped with a remarkable library; the four seats of the college for the Congregation of the Sacred Heart (arch. J. Liger Belair, J.-P. Megharbané, 1974-77); and the modernization of the port and airport of H̱alada.
Linked to this strong impulse is the phenomenon of architecture schools, which, after the Académie Libanaise des Beaux-Arts (ALBA) founded in 1943 by A. Boutros, arose around the 1960s, linked to Beirut Arab University (1962) and at the American University of Beirut (1963); the most recent and important is that of the Université Saint Esprit in al-Kaslik, 1974. These schools help to train a large number of local architects with an international approach, according to both French and Anglo-American orientations, as well as favoring the appearance of the first multidisciplinary professional studios on the US model, such as those Dār al-Handasa, ACE, Ḥatīb and ῾Alāmih. In this regard, it is worth mentioning in particular the Pierre Neema e Associati studio which began its activity in the 1960s, operating with a large number of projects, both in other Arab countries and in North Africa and at home, where he built the Lebanese House of Crafts and the Verdum Center in Beirut (1967), and the Haykal hospital in Tripoli (1966), as well as numerous residential complexes. In recent years the same study has completed major interventions such as the Sofil Center (1984) and the Rizk hospital (1986) in Beirut.
The civil war of 1975-76 and the destruction of the center of Beirut create the need for interventions of a global nature, which tend to reorganize the modern city, even in the search for its historical identity. However, the area most damaged by the war events (historic center and hotel area) corresponds to the so-called “ green line ”: a rift that divides the city into East Beirut (Christian) and West Beirut (Muslim), thus preventing any reorganization intervention.. The reconstruction takes place in the north of the city, with a development that extends to the east and beyond, incorporating, for over 20 km, smaller towns towards Byblos; among these the town of Ǧuniyya, which despite its municipal independence is today one of the most important areas of Christian Beirut.
In recent years there have been numerous public building interventions in this part of the city: the Bank of Syria and Lebanon (arch. R. Geammal); the Lebanon-Europe General Bank Society (arch. P. Neema); the De Faqrā hotel (architect M. Bonfils); the al-Amwāǧ Center in Ǧuniyya; the Alta Vista Center in Ǧuniyya (architect GA Sfeir); the Būlus Center in al-Ḥāzmiyya (arch. S. Kfoury, A. Joseph, 1983) and the church of S. Elie (arch. R. Achi, ing. N. Zaknour). In West Beirut it has only been partially renovated and rebuilt. It includes the Broadway-Hamra Center (arch. M. Baldoukian, 1980); the Riyāḍ shopping center (arch. H̱atīb and ῾Alāmih, 1982); and the Mosque (arch. N. Tabbara, AM Daouk). As for the historic city center, since the early 1980s, the Saudi foundation Society Oger Liban has stood out for its commitment to the restoration of buildings damaged by the war, carrying out a particular restoration work in old Beirut. In addition to this, the same Society has completed numerous other interventions in the country, such as the al-Ḥarīrī hospital in Kfarfalous built in association with the hospital of the American University of Beirut; and the Center for University Studies, both in Sidon.
Finally, it is worth noting the current strong development, linked to economic factors, of private residential construction that has affected the Lebanese coastal strip (Rimāl seaside resort north of Beirut, arch. N. Farhat; Bīblūs Mārīnā seaside resort in Byblos, arch. T. Kordahi; Acquamarina 2 seaside resort in Ǧuniyya, arch. Fadi Joseph Ph. Karam).
