Nice continues to attract new residents, with more than 2,000 arrivals between September 2023 and August 2024. Last night, Christian Estrosi, the city’s mayor, met with these new residents during an exchange session at the Palais de la Méditerranée.
The municipality of Nice continues its tradition by organizing an annual welcome ceremony with the new residents of Nice to assist them with their paperwork and ease their settling in. This year, Christian Estrosi chose to offer a friendly moment and opted for an exchange session with them.
More than 700 people attended this event. During this question-and-answer session, the mayor engaged directly with the new arrivals, accompanied by his municipal team, including Marie-Claire Lellouche, municipal councilor in charge of welcoming new residents, Anthony Borré, Gael Nofri, and many others.
Right from his opening remarks on stage, Christian Estrosi immediately created a close atmosphere by declaring: “It’s just Christian for me!”. A line that instantly triggered laughter from the audience and set the relaxed tone of the meeting. Before taking questions, the mayor first explained the importance of integrating new arrivals. He did not hesitate to share his story as the son of Italian immigrants while expressing his hope that everyone feels like a Niçois citizen as soon as they arrive.
The Issue of Security
In the assembly, a participant immediately mentioned not feeling safe: “I don’t want to alarm those who arrived after me. But I, along with my family, feel a bit less secure today. I don’t know exactly what has changed, and I would like to know what can be done to reassure us.”
To “reassure” her, the Mayor listed numerous security measures implemented in the city. First, Christian Estrosi recalled that when he took office, there were only 130 municipal police officers, but today, there are “480, accompanied by security and cleanliness assistants, for a total of 850 agents, alongside the national police“.
Enhanced Surveillance and Drug Trafficking Challenges
The mayor also highlighted the city’s extensive video surveillance network, consisting of 4,800 cameras. “It’s almost one high-definition camera for every 200 inhabitants,” he noted. He then praised the efficiency of the tramway, equipped with cameras and connected to a Wi-Fi network, making it one of the safest spaces: “As soon as something happens in a tramway carriage… at the next stop, you have the police picking you up like the wrongdoers“.
Christian Estrosi also touched on drug trafficking as the “main scourge” in France. He referred to a tragic incident from last July, where a gang dispute between drug traffickers caused a fatal fire in a building in Les Moulins district in Nice. Despite the presence of ministers Gabriel Attal and Gérald Darmanin and the orders given to act, he lamented that “the same dealers were back the next day“.
Arrests and Expulsions
Anthony Borré, the first deputy mayor, then supplemented these remarks with recent information. He announced the arrest of an individual who attacked a student, thanks to the city’s video protection cameras. “While these cameras don’t always prevent crime, they are extremely useful for solving cases,” he emphasized.
Anthony Borré also noted that Nice is not only France’s leading city in video protection, but also the only one to have established an agreement allowing the eviction of traffickers and troublemakers from social housing: “We have obtained 150 evictions“. He also mentioned that the 2025 budget will include new measures to strengthen local security in response to evolving threats.
The Issue of Transportation
The questions continued, and one of the new residents expressed her concerns. She addressed the reliability of buses, particularly line 5. “The tramway works perfectly, but in terms of the buses, the reliability isn’t there. What can be done to improve that?” she asked.
In response, the mayor explained that a bus network restructuring was underway. “We must decarbonize all our transport,” he stated, highlighting the city’s commitment to achieving a 100% decarbonized fleet by 2025. He also pointed out that many buses, aged 15 to 20 years, no longer met current criteria: “We are turning to manufacturers to acquire new, suitable models“. Christian Estrosi also emphasized the importance of a multimodal network to reduce pollution: “It is essential to organize park-and-ride facilities so that people leave their cars and use public transit“.
Gael Nofri, the deputy mayor in charge of transportation, took the floor to provide further details on the mayor’s comments. “We are in the process of completely reorganizing the bus network“, he affirmed, highlighting the new tram lines that will influence this restructuring. Regarding line 5, he assured that efforts will be made to improve its regularity: “We will enhance the service by purchasing new, suitable electric buses“. Gael Nofri also added that some lines will now be available on Sundays by reservation to meet users’ expectations.
Strengthening Ties
For more than an hour, Christian Estrosi and the new residents of Nice discussed their daily lives, their concerns, their expectations, and the city’s major projects. The Mayor Horizons also indicated wanting to repeat these meetings to promote integration: “I believe it’s definitely worth organizing as often as possible“.
In addition to interventions from certain deputy mayors, several stands were available to enrich this meeting between the Mayor and new residents and present the various services offered by the city, particularly in educational, cultural, social, and sport areas, among others.
