The document summarizes the design and construction of the Grande Arche de la Defense in Paris. An international design competition in 1982 selected a winning entry by Danish architect Johann Otto von Spreckelsen and engineer Erik Reitzel to build a modern version of the Arc de Triomphe. Construction was completed in 1989. The Arche is turned at a 6 degree angle to accommodate underground infrastructure, and houses government offices with an exhibition center on the roof, though public access to the roof was closed after an elevator accident in 2010.