The association “La Clé des Champs – No to the reconstruction of the Nice prison on site” is mobilizing for the relocation of the prison and the creation of a new neighborhood in its place.
Its president Philippe Hiller explains the purpose of this approach: “Our neighborhood is already experiencing a very high concentration of housing. It is suffocating and needs green spaces and new infrastructures to breathe again: green spaces, children’s playgrounds, a bowling alley, parking, a shopping gallery and retail stores, a gymnasium and other public infrastructures, limited and low-height private sector housing to enhance the neighborhood.”
The issue of a new prison in Nice has been a subject of discussion for many years.
The options naturally lead to areas with significant space, likely in the Var plain or the Paillon valley. Naturally, the opposition from mayors and residents is strong: no surprises here, as everyone believes that the common interest should align with their own!
To try to prevent an uproar before a decision from the State takes precedence, the Mayor of Nice… and President of the Nice Côte d’Azur Metropolis proposed to the Prefect three solutions, with an expressed preference for the reconstruction on the same site of a new 800-place prison by building upwards.
The Prefect of the Alpes Maritimes indicated that this proposal would be studied by the Ministry of Justice.
Such a project, undoubtedly carried out on an “occupied site” (meaning keeping part of the inmates on site), would require 3 to 4 years of work with inherently causing inconvenience to the local residents and merchants of the area.
Therefore, some residents decided to mobilize against this reconstruction project of the Nice prison on site by creating the association “La Clé des Champs – No to the reconstruction of the Nice prison on site” a non-political association under the law of July 1, 1901.
This association advocates for the relocation of the Nice prison in order to create a new attractive neighborhood in its place, with new infrastructures to enhance the neighborhood rather than condemn it irreparably.
By doing so, it shares the opinion of the mayor of Nice, who has consistently stated since 2008 (and as recently as September 11) that he wanted to relocate the Nice prison, “which no longer has any reason to be on the current site.”
It is also perfectly aligned with the position of the mayor of Nice, who declared in the Nice Matin newspaper on August 12, 2011, regarding the potential on-site reconstruction of the Nice prison: “I am totally opposed to it, I will not let it happen,” and “in place of the current prison, I want to develop an eco-district after acquiring the land, as I have committed to the state.”
For Philippe Hiller, president of the association: “The residents are therefore both surprised and disappointed by the recent statements made by the mayor of Nice going against the project he supported with such fervor until now.
Our association strongly supports the creation of a “new green lung, of which only one-tenth would be occupied by housing” in place of the prison, in accordance with the previous declarations of the mayor of Nice.
A topic that is sure to continue making headlines.
