Marie-Christine Arnautu, the lead candidate of the FN and Rassemblement Bleu Marine, presented her Ray redevelopment project, a project that goes beyond the sole area of the former OGC Nice Stadium.
To support the project, Marine Le Pen’s candidate gathered around her two of her running mates: Luce Feron, President of the Neighborhood Committee in Nice North, and Gaël Nofri, Campaign Director, particularly responsible for transport, development, and neighborhoods.
It is the latter who explains the content of these proposals to us:
Nice Premium: We know that. The residents of the neighborhood are against a speculative real estate plan (Housing and businesses) of this area and have repeatedly expressed their preference for a mixed development between local sports facilities and green spaces. What are the recommendations of your proposal?
Gaël Nofri: In the minds of its leaders, in the political and administrative organization, Nice remains like atrophied around the banks of the Paillon. Yet, since the Consiglio d’Ornato (1832), our city has evolved: It went from 30,000 inhabitants to 100,000 in 1900 and 350,000 today; even 540,000 if we think in terms of Metropolis. It is necessary to take this phenomenon into account in the perception of the City and its development. Decisions must also accompany, supervise, and structure this evolution.
The Ray area is strategic for Nice’s development. After the gift of 12.7 million euros made by the Mayor to the real estate developer of the South Station, it is the last land reserve allowing for structuring the North-South axis of our city. It is here that the heart of the Metropolis on the scale of our territory must be built. It benefits from the proximity of the highway, Tramway Line 1, numerous parking lots (with the possibility of further increasing the number), and also a real proximity to the city center.
We cannot hand it over to the over-urbanization desired by the Mayor, nor to the zone freeze wanted by the Lefts… We must bring people and activity to transform it into a driver, in service of a territorial dynamic, otherwise, this neighborhood risks pauperization, notably due to the proximity of Las Planas.
The project proposed by the Nice Bleu Marine List with Marie-Christine Arnautu respects this requirement. It is not just about restructuring the 7 hectares of the stadium but broadening the scope of reflection to the entire area between Place Fontaine du Temple and the Ray roundabout (Corner of avenue du Ray – avenue Ernest Lairolle). We want to consolidate on this site a coherent administrative hub allowing to centralize the 2,500 employees of the City and the Metropolis (roughly 1/4 of the workforce), a local structure with the maintenance of the nursery, the school, the Post Office… a room for seniors too… all in an environmentally respectful setting with gardens and human-scale architecture.
It will also be necessary to favor the connection between this space and the Borriglione axis through urban redevelopment allowing for easy linkage with Place Alexandre Médecin.
Nice Premium: Will the current lawn of the Ray stadium be condemned or preserved for local activities?
Gaël Nofri: The goal is not to maintain the current stadium but to preserve a sporting vocation for this space. With, at the very beginning of the Comte de Falicon, a quality swimming pool, tennis courts intended to be integrated into this project, along with a sports hall for the neighborhood…
On the other hand, we wish for the skate park to be moved to a more appropriate sector, where there will be no nuisance for the neighborhood. The idea is truly to integrate this metropolitan project into the Nice-North neighborhood, its spirit, its characteristics. This is essential. That is why we want to build a real green lung where urban planning will remain respectful of the neighborhood: gardens and green spaces play a significant role in this part of the City.
Moreover, Marie-Christine Arnautu announced that if elected, she would call for project proposals and everything would be amendable based on the expectations expressed by the residents.
Nice Premium: How do you plan to finance your project given the financial situation of the city and the metropolis?
Gaël Nofri: The question of finances is essential. You are right to ask because in Nice, with Christian Estrosi, the King of bluff and announcements without follow-up, we had almost lost the habit of such a return to reality. For us, it’s a rule: Finance our projects without resorting to loans and taxes.
First, it’s about rationalizing our expenses. The buried Tramway Line 2 desired by the Mayor is an economic folly, an urban non-sense. These should be the first decisions to restructure our future investments. This is what Marie-Christine Arnautu announced at her press conference last summer.
Then, it is necessary to make savings in terms of operation. This is also the goal of this Ray project. It should be understood that creating a consolidation of 2,500 territorial civil servants aimed at revitalizing the economy and activity of the neighborhood will also lead to significant savings: The city of Nice and the Metropolis are currently scattered across several dozen sites, many of which are rented. We will make very important savings by both abandoning these rentals and facilitating the work of the central administrations.
The cost of this project is estimated between 75 and 80 million euros. Given the previous elements, this amount is modest. It is then about making the right choices, those that push for the coherence and overall development of the territory: saving Nice-North, creating this backbone of azurean development around the North-South axis of Tramway Line 1, revitalizing the commerce of Gorbella and Comte de Falicon, that’s a bet that warrants an investment!
In any case, the commitments of Marie-Christine Arnautu and all the running mates are clear: Nothing will be decided and nothing will be initiated without a local referendum. With Marine Le Pen, our desire is to put the People at the heart of the political decision-making process!
