The bold move by Eric Ciotti naturally succeeded thanks to the expected cooperation from his colleagues: “either the City of Nice postpones its project of demolishing the TNN and the Acropolis Palace, or the Department will no longer subsidize the transformation of the Paillon promenade under the urban territory contracts for 2026. However, the overall envelope of these contracts in favor of Nice and the Metropolis would not be affected: the funds allocated would be redirected to other projects in Nice,” states the motion presented by the President of the majority group, who is also the president of the finance committee.
Ipse dixit, ipse facit. Only the “estrosists” counselors did not vote for this resolution, choosing instead to leave the session. What an atmosphere.
Easily the winner of this round, Eric Ciotti wanted to explain his actions:
“The planned demolitions are a source of concern, misunderstanding, and even anger among many economic and tourist actors and, beyond that, citizens. It is an environmental, economic mistake, an architectural wound, but also a budgetary folly that will cost nearly 300 million.
These two buildings, funded with the help of the Department of Alpes-Maritimes, hold significant importance for our city. They function perfectly and host international events.”
Candidly, he justifies it as such: “My position is solely motivated by the future of Nice and my concern for the common good. We cannot accept such a reckless project.”
In plain terms, he is reserving the right to decide whether a project aligns with the ‘future of Nice.’ He, and not the Municipal Council of Nice.
As for the common good…
The continuation is hilarious: Renaud Muselier, president of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, announced that the region could provide financial support: 4.5 million euros have already been voted during the Friday session dedicated to the 2022 budget orientations.
Just goes to show… there is always a solution!
