While already thinking about the 2009 edition of Bionazur, which he wishes to be more focused on the High Environmental Quality (HQE) approach, Paul Obadia, General Director of Nice-Expo, is pleased with the success of the event. “Nice today positions itself as a pioneering city of sustainable development,” he states. A bet that wasn’t won in advance because, as Frédéric Jourdan-Gassin, president of Bionazur, reminded, few people believed in the longevity of this fair when it was created ten years ago.
In any case, the talk of elected officials about sustainable development and energy savings seems well-rehearsed. Patrick Allemand, vice-president of the Regional Council, wanted to remind that it had been a pioneer in the field, being the first local authority to finance the extra cost of solar installations for individuals, with the Energy Check. From the municipality, a flurry of initiatives aligned with green practices has been announced.
From Central Park to Silicon Valley: America in Nice!
Eco Vallée, the National Interest Operation of the Plaine du Var, which is to be the driving force for the development of the Côte d’Azur Metropolis for the next 30 years, will see its public institution created by the end of June. A 10-hectare public park will be inaugurated in three weeks on the hill of Estienne-d’Orves, the “Central Park” promised by Christian Estrosi should come to fruition next year… All with the aim of transforming the 9,000 hectares of the Plaine du Var into the “Silicon Valley” of innovation in sustainable development, and with a determined intent to “eliminate all urban blemishes that pollute Nice,” to quote Eric Ciotti, deputy and first deputy mayor. The municipality commits to now only erect environmentally friendly buildings, launching the construction of the Saint-Isidore college, the department’s first 100% energy-autonomous college. A passive construction, in professional jargon.
Another ambition, not a minor one: Christian Estrosi wants to make Nice a hub for international business tourism, by providing exhibition professionals with a surface equivalent to that of Barcelona or Milan. And to optimize the significant traffic and the logistics that this entails, the municipality is considering setting up a multimodal station near the MIN. The “green frame,” to leave cars at the entrances of the city and cross it using public transport. So while waiting for line 2 of the green tram, the City can already congratulate itself on hosting for the first time next year the International Public Transport Fair…
