A green stretch between Place de la Bastille and Rue du Faubourg du Temple, on paper, it’s attractive. But the project of the City of Paris for the boulevards Jules Ferry and Richard Lenoir, in the 11th arrondissement, does not delight everyone. Residents expressed their disappointment in a petition launched in Mayand the association France nature environnement (FNE) has just seized the administrative court to request the cancellation of the authorization to deposit the grids which encircle the squares, according to our information, confirming those of the Journal of Greater Paris.
“With this development, four squares typical of Parisian urban planning (Squares Richard-Lenoir, Bréguet-Sabin, May Picqueray and Jules Ferry) which contribute to the charm of the place will disappear. Indeed, this project involves the transformation of these squares so typical of Paris by the destruction of the fences and green hedges that surround them and the creation of “vast lawns open to the public”. The children will therefore no longer be able to play there in safety, because there will no longer be any separation with the roadway,” criticizes the text of the petition from the residents.
More biodiversity?
Even if the vegetated beds are supposed to increase in size, opponents fear a blow of bluster: “Normally the hedges are not supposed to disappear, but they do not tell us how they will preserve them, and how they are embedded in the grids …” is alarmed Martine Cohen, secretary of the Sauvons Jules et Richard association. “The shaving of the hedges will also destroy a beautiful set of biodiversity, which is currently home to many species of birds and which constitutes a pleasant point of greenery during the winter”, explains the petition, which also fears noise pollution: ” If this project sees the light of day as it is, the opening of these squares at night will cause nuisance, insecurity and incivility. »
“It’s a nameless absurdity to do such a thing when there is something that pleases. Parisians demand care and not a questioning of what is appropriate” denounces Christine Nedelec, president of FNE Paris. As for biodiversity, the association manager believes that there will be “no more”: “They count the planted lawns as biodiversity but they will be massacred by the trampling of people. »
5,000 m2 of green spaces
“The existing thickets and hedges will obviously be preserved”, defended the mayor of the 11th, François VauglinWho brags “nearly 5,000 m2 of additional green space”
FNE hopes to have the project canceled based on what they believe to be a procedural error. “The appeal filed by FNE is based on the absence of a prior impact study, while the base of the project exceeds 10 ha, the threshold above which such studies are mandatory. explains Maître Cofflard, FNE lawyer, to the Journal of Greater Paris.