The Mitterrand projects included opening one hundred and fifty new parks, squares and gardens, a larger number than those constructed under Napoleon III, though the total area of the new parks was much smaller. Unlike the Second Empire, when all the new gardens followed the same basic plan and picturesque style, the Mitterrand-era gardens were built by different architects and landscape architects, and offered a wide variety of styles and designs, from miniature recreations of natural wilderness to high-tech. Many of the new parks and gardens, such as La Villette, were built on former industrial sites, and a majority were built in the outer neighborhoods of the city, where the population was most dense.