Should the redevelopment project for Place Félix-Éboué be stopped? The Paris administrative court will look into this question this Friday. Two local residents' associations filed an appeal at the beginning of the week against the planning permission for this square located near the Daumesnil metro station, in the 12th arrondissement.
Work is due to begin there in the coming weeks. The City of Paris wishes to reduce the space dedicated to motorized traffic and green this mineral square. At the heart of this restructuring: the creation of a new pedestrian square of 3,000 m2 over the entire southern part, including the surroundings of the lion fountain. A thousand square meters of green spaces are planned on either side of this monument, which currently sits in the center of the roundabout.
“It’s going to create monster traffic jams! »
A period of consultation took place between October and December 2022. But opponents of the project denounce “a sham”. “None of our counter-proposals were accepted,” says Alexis Dupont-Vignet, the treasurer of “12 ensemble”, one of the two associations behind the appeal.
These residents are opposed, among other things, to the new traffic plan which provides for the removal of the roundabout. Vehicles will no longer be able to go all the way around the square, which will take the shape of a horseshoe. “It will create monster traffic jams,” predicts Alexis Dupont-Vignet. We are aware that the space dedicated to motorized vehicles seems excessive, particularly in the context of global warming. But the solution is not to create artificial traffic jams. » They would like “the gyration to be maintained with the creation of a bidirectional cycle path all around”.
The associations also say they are “concerned about respecting the heritage integrity of the place”. The pedestrianization of the area around the lion fountain could, according to them, be the source of incivility. “It should not be tagged or never be in water again,” anticipates Alexis Dupont-Vignet.
An argument that the City of Paris does not wish to comment on before the courts rule on this appeal. “It is their right to file an appeal,” simply retorts Emmanuel Grégoire, the first deputy (PS) of the mayor of Paris, also elected in the 12th century. The Paris administrative court should render its decision within a week.