An old Alsatian brasserie in the heart of Strasbourg soon to be replaced by a Foot locker. Of the national fast food restaurants, banks… If you look closely, apart from restaurants, hotels and businesses specially dedicated to tourism, the commercial offer is becoming unbalanced, or at least becoming more standardized. Small local businesses, clothing, artisans, services, those that give life to cities are melting like snow in the sun, often giving way to large national brands. In Strasbourg, as in other municipalities, city centers are being lost, their authenticity is gradually drowning in commercial standardization. Also, to support its local businesses rather than setting up large franchises, Strasbourg chose during its very last municipal council to set up a safeguard perimeter and a right of pre-emption on the installation of businesses.
A system that has already existed for a long time in cities like Lille, Marseille or Nantes, with more or less large pre-emption sectors. In Strasbourg, contrary to what was envisaged in 2019, this scope will not be limited to the Big Island and goes well beyond. Many streets and entire sectors, in several neighborhoods, are affected. From the Gare district, from Les Halles, from Petite France, from Elsau, from Cronenbourg, from Neuhof, from Krutenau… A decision which is based on a recent study carried out by the city, and which is unsurprising in the European capital , shows the significant representation of the food and catering sectors, particularly fast food and takeaway, or even the development of national brands in ready-to-wear, despite a collapse in this market. Cafés, hotel-restaurants alone represent more than a quarter of the offer in the Strasbourg city center and even more in the city center where certain streets have even developed sectoral monoactivities. “A dynamic which can tend to isolate and slowly disappear independent, local and food retail, the less profitable sectors of culture and leisure,” notes the study. However, these activities remain particularly important for maintaining an attractive and balanced city center, which meets the expectations of residents, workers, visitors and tourists. »
A lever for business diversification
Adopted unanimously by the municipal assembly, “in a context of accelerating changes in commerce, underlined Joël Steffen, deputy mayor in charge of commerce, crafts and tourism, the establishment of the right pre-emption of business funds, artisanal funds and commercial leases, should be “an additional lever” to diversify the offer. “An additional lever against this standardization of commerce”, thanks to a perimeter where the city will concretely have priority over possible buyers. Clearly, the town hall will have a say when a store is purchased. Any transfer of premises or a commercial lease must be declared to the town hall if the business is within the pre-emption perimeter. It then remains for the city to declare its intention to pre-empt or not, that is to say, to buy back the business before handing it over to a trader or craftsman. It is up to her, within a year, to find a new buyer.
Easy on paper, harder to actually put into practice. Already, because “through feedback from other communities, we know that this right of pre-emption is powerful but that it must be handled with caution and parsimony since the community interferes in private affairs. We will evaluate it with the partners as it is implemented in the years to come,” concludes Joël Steffen. A difficult implementation perhaps also because you have to have the means. In fact, the city must match the seller’s price or negotiate a compromise… A system which can prove costly for municipal finances and which could ultimately amount to pre-empting, especially when a business is on the verge of really change nature. The price to pay certainly for a diversified business.