In the heart of the 16th arrondissement of Paris, is rue Boileau in danger? That’s what it says the association SOS Paris in a video published on July 31. “Like that at 1 rue Alfred Bruneau, a characterful 19th century house and its large garden are in the process of being demolished to make way for “vegetated” buildings. In addition to the loss of heritage, it is a new island of freshness that we are about to shave, ”explains the description that accompanies the video.
According to the association for the defense of architectural heritage and the living environment, the district “which evokes the old village of Auteuil” is threatened by the multiple destructions launched by the City of Paris. At number 41, the architectural heritage would be completely demolished and replaced by a four-storey building comprising more than 68 apartments. “The garden listed as a protected green space will be completely destroyed,” adds the association, which points to the gradual concreting of the district.
For two minutes, the association holds the Paris City Hall responsible, which would follow an entirely financial logic. “She seeks to make the smallest square meter of building land profitable”. But contrary to what the video claims, the building permit to transform the land was refused.
FAKE OFF
” It does not make any sense “. Like a warning cry from the first deputy mayor of Paris in charge of urban planning, Emmanuel Grégoire. On Twitter, the day after the publication of SOS Paris, the elected official quickly denied the information. “The building permit was refused: I am opposed to this project, the Commission of Old Paris and the Architects of the buildings of France too”.
Indeed, the building permit for the real estate project was indeed refused on July 5, tells us the site of the Paris City Hall which puts all the voted requests online. The address is that of 41 rue Boileau and the description is as follows: “Construction of four buildings for residential use (68 dwellings created) following the total demolition of the existing buildings for residential and office use. Area demolished: 1,231 m². Surface created: 3,376.93 m². Total area: 1.488m². »
“A license instruction like there are thousands a year”
Near 20 minutes, the elected Emmanuel Grégoire returns to the case, before what he calls “the malicious and defamatory powder effects of social networks”. “Behind these good intentions lies an overt political hostility. […] It’s a permit instruction like there are thousands a year in Paris. Each time, they are the subject of a contradictory exchange between the project leaders, the urban planning department and the Old Paris commission and the architects”.
At the time of the debates, the main actors are all unanimous: there is no question of accepting such a project as it stands. “From the start of the investigation, three angles made us wince,” recalls the town planning assistant. These are also the same criteria pointed out by the video of SOS Paris: the density of the project, the character prejudicial to the heritage as well as the destruction of a protected green space.
The readapted local urban plan
The video also claims that the district is not protected by the Local Urban Plan (PLU), which would leave more freedom to the Paris City Hall. Emmanuel Grégoire confirms: space does not benefit from protection. “But he has a heritage interest that we are watching ardently in Paris,” he assures us.
But why not protect him in this case? “The first reason is constitutional,” says Emmanuel Grégoire very quickly. The PLU are rules that violate freedom of ownership. You have to justify them”. The second reason is that the Parisian PLU is evolving and a new one will see the light of day in 2024. “The current plan is too old and is not protective enough on a certain number of these subjects. There is an urgency to modify it, ”supports the elected official.
A mea culpa from SOS Paris
Since then, the initial video of the SOS Paris association has also been deleted to be finally updated. “The building permit for 41 rue Boileau was still being studied when we prepared our video. We should have double-checked the status of the project when it went live. The permit was finally refused and we thank the Town Hall for this,” tweeted the association on Wednesday.