The Garden City in the Butte Rouge, the Cité Jardins, is one of the earliest examples of housing at moderated rents (HLM).

The high-speed LGV Atlantique crosses the city through a tunnel covered by a park called Coulée verte (greenway).

From 31 December 2002, it was part of the Agglomeration community of Hauts de Bièvre, which merged into the Métropole du Grand Paris in January 2016.

A highly wooded area, it can be crossed by the Coulée verte du sud parisien [fr], which includes part of Via Turonesis which is one of the routes through France on the pilgrimage to the tomb of St. James the Great.

The name Châtenay comes from castellanum = petit château (little castle) and Malabry comes from a deformation of badly located, spoiled ground.