Paris: neighbors of a ruined building in the Marais district take Anne Hidalgo to court

The Paris administrative court has disavowed the city of Paris, which had forced the owners of a building in the Marais district to carry out work on a “shared wall” with a neighboring co-ownership.

An imminent danger order after significant cracks

As early as 2018, “significant cracks” had in fact been observed on the facades of these two adjoining buildings on rue des Gravilliers, in the 3rd arrondissement of the capital: the first – which is on the corner with the small rue des Vertus , above the “wholesale leather goods” store Cafredy Sac – has been reinforced for several years with props.

The Paris police chief then ordered the two co-owners’ unions to “carry out the necessary work to remedy the disorder, in particular jointly on the common wall separating the two buildings”. But, faced with “the worsening of the disorders” and the “shifting” of the most degraded building towards rue des Vertus, an order of “original danger” then of “imminent danger” was taken in 2018 by the mayor (PS) from Paris Anne Hidalgo.

In 2019, the town hall finally “stayed proceedings” – that is to say, granted a delay pending “work in progress” launched by the co-owners. But in 2021 the same “disorders” were observed again.

“An error of judgment” from Paris town hall

In January 2022, the Paris town hall therefore “put formal notice” on the union of co-owners of n°14 rue des Gravilliers – the most degraded – to “carry out, within twelve months, the repair work concerning the elements of structure, the facade walls and the foundations of its building necessary to restore its foundation, cohesion and solidity.

At the same time, she had also asked her neighbors at number 12 to also carry out work on the “separating” wall, and particularly on the “chimney stack located on the dividing line between the two buildings”.

A sharing of responsibility which had displeased the building at number 12, the least degraded therefore, which complained of “suffering from the deficiency of the neighboring co-ownership”. Its owners therefore took legal action to have the municipal decree annulled: this decision was tainted by an “error of assessment” since it “indiscriminately places the carrying out of the work on the dividing wall at the expense of the two co-owners whereas “it is up to the syndicate of co-owners of the building at 14 (…) to carry out the structural work on its building”.

The union of co-owners of the building located at number 12 considered, in fact, that this decree was unnecessary as work had already been carried out on the disputed chimney stack. He also demanded 5,000 euros from the city of Paris to cover his legal costs.

Justice on the side of the owners

In a judgment dated May 10, 2024 which has just been made public, the Paris administrative court ruled in favor first of all because of an “irregular procedure” which “deprived the union of a guarantee” applicant.

“The provisions (…) of the decree of December 24, 2020 certainly allow the competent authority not to restart the entirety of a danger procedure initiated before January 1, 2021,” he agrees. “However, since (…) the city of Paris intended to issue a security order more than two years after having expressly suspended the issue of an ordinary danger order, (…) the provisions [du décret] did not authorize it to exempt itself from the obligations (…) consisting of (…) informing the co-owners’ association (…) of the reasons which led it to consider issuing a security order. »

On the merits of the case, “the absence of repair of the only chimney stack located on the dividing boundary [des deux immeubles, ndlr] did not constitute (…) a risk for the safety of the occupants or third parties,” consider the judges.

Even if nothing proves “that the chimney stack had been repaired (…) on the date of the safety order”, the experts had qualified the “disorders affecting the chimneys” as “simple degradation (…) and not a threat in ruins”. And “the repair work was voted on in December 2022 for the union of co-owners of 12 rue des Gravilliers,” notes the court.

“The union of co-owners of 12 rue des Gravilliers is justified in maintaining that the security order (…) is tainted by an error of assessment”, therefore ruled the Paris administrative court. Despite its protests, the city will have to pay 2,000 euros to the applicant to cover his legal costs.

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