It was one of the announced highlights of Emmanuel Macron’s visit, passing through Marseille to launch Act II of the Marseille plan on a grand scale. Under a strong mistral, in the middle of an audience of guests at sunset on the place d’armes of Fort Saint-Jean, the President of the Republic announced new measures supposed to contribute to the development of the second city of France. From port to architecture and culture, 20 minutes returns to the main projects to come, as diverse as they are varied, announced to the Mucem by the Head of State.
A “blue economy school”
Emmanuel Macron announced his intention to support the University of Aix-Marseille in its “blue economy school project”. This school would open on a site in the large maritime port of Marseille, at Estaque, “to train hundreds or even thousands of young people from the northern districts”.
Works from the Louvre and the Pompidou Center loaned to Marseille
When he pronounces his words, Emmanuel Macron outlines a big smile, while a round of applause resounds in front of him. “I asked both the Louvre and the Pompidou Center to agree to share several of their works, launches the President of the Republic. First works from the permanent collections of Pompidou which will be under construction for several years. These works can be admired at the Mucem but also in other museums in the city of Marseille. According to the Head of State, at the same time, “the Mucem will build partnerships with several museums throughout the Mediterranean to exchange works”, and to allow “residencies for artists between all the countries of the “.
The Odysseo project for 2024
It was part of the announcements of Act I of the Marseille plan in large, but today seems to be at a standstill. During this speech, Emmanuel Macron reiterated his attachment to Odysseo, a structural project combining art and coastal protection in Frioul carried by the Marseille designer Ora-Ïto. According the M, the magazine of Worldthis “campus museum” was to open by 2026. But the President of the Republic has announced that he wants to open it as early as 2024, i.e. next year.
The President of the Republic also intends to reinvent Marseille town planning through the construction of “ten major districts” by renowned contemporary architects, via architectural competitions. In this same perspective, Emmanuel Macron announced the construction of “a new radiant city in the northern districts. It will have another name, and we will launch another architectural competition. »
The decarbonization of the port
The President of the Republic announced his desire to “make Marseille an exemplary port in terms of decarbonization of maritime transport”, in particular through the electrification of the port and the decarbonization of the fleets. Emmanuel Macron insisted on the need to develop for this, in connection with the port, freight and river. A point that he will certainly be called upon to detail in more detail during his planned visit to the large maritime port of Marseille-Fos this Wednesday, alongside the new boss of the port, a certain Christophe Castaner.