Are we heading towards the epilogue of a showdown that has now lasted for nearly a decade? If the legal aspect “wasteland Saint-Sauveur”, opposing on one side the town hall of Lille, the metropolis and the promoter, on the other the associations, is not finished, on the ground, things are accelerating. According to the associations which defend the idea of transforming this space into a green lung, the authorities are about to expel all the occupants of the wasteland, activists and migrants.
In early June, opponents of the Saint-Sauveur wasteland reconversion project suffered a severe defeat before the Lille administrative court, which had “unreservedly rejected the request of the associations” who were asking for the cancellation of the environmental authorization. The promoters of the reconversion were pleased with this judgment and promised a rapid start of the construction site. For their part, the associations had accused the blow while announcing to appeal this decision.
Evacuated activists and migrants
We are here today. Except that the appeal is not suspensive and that an “expulsion decision” was “issued by order at the request of the MEL, the SPL Euralille and LMH”, assured the associations on Monday. Therefore, this expulsion can take place at any time. According to this same source, the ordinance highlights “problems of insalubrity, disturbance of public order and neighborhood disturbances” to justify the urgency to operate.
In fact, it is not a question of expelling only the activists occupying the belvedere to develop an ecological project there. Part of the wasteland has been transformed for years into a migrant camp. A sort of slum of about twenty huts, sheltering an indeterminate number of people.
“We are calling for a plan to shelter and care for people, otherwise the precariousness and the unacceptable trafficking that feeds on it will only be pushed elsewhere”, ask the associations. Contacted about this by 20 minutesthe Nord prefecture did not respond.