Pproduce vegetables on the land of the Bordeaux-Le Bouscat racecourse. Patrick Alvarez has been dreaming of this for a long time. As early as 2014, the elected PCF, then head of the Left Front list in the municipal elections, defended the project to establish a cultivation zone on part of the 50 hectares of equipment dedicated to horse racing. The Bouscat biodrome was intended to become “the largest urban vegetable garden in Europe in cohabitation with horse racing activities”, according to a campaign document at the time. Sanctuary of the site, increased biodiversity, creation of an innovative agroecology sector in partnership with the Blanquefort agricultural high school, the Region, the Department, the CUB (in 2014), the promise was great.
The list led by Patrick Alvarez proposed the creation of a SCIC (Cooperative Society of Collective Interest) linking farmers, restaurateurs, central kitchen, Amap… In vain. Reactivated during the 2020 municipal elections, then during the 2021 Departmental elections, the biodrome has never been built.
golf practice
However, the elected communist is tenacious. Without waiting for the next electoral meeting, he returns to the charge. The reason? “I learned through the press of the creation of a golf practice in the middle of the racecourse. Rebuilding the market gardening belt of Bouscat, while the usable agricultural area has almost disappeared, responds more to the needs of the hour than an establishment of this type,” he considers, in a logic of sustainable development. It bases its approach on two programs: the Territorial Food Project of the Metropolis and Gironde Alimen’terre of the Department.
“Rebuilding the market gardening belt, while the usable agricultural area has almost disappeared, responds more to the needs of the hour”
Godard’s priority
“There is no contradiction between having an economic activity on the racecourse and developing a market gardening activity in its northwest quadrant,” admits first deputy Gwenaël Lamarque. On condition of agreeing on the terms: “This zone can be dedicated to shared gardens, but not to an urban farm activity. » And the elected representative of the majority clarified his position: “The food self-sufficiency of the Bordeaux metropolis is seven days. It is utopian to believe that an urban farm could feed the children of our schools and daycare centers. It would not be able to meet the necessary supply volumes. The economic profitability seems fragile to me. »
Based on this observation, Gwenaël Lamarque considers it more relevant to offer land to Bouscataise families “desiring or needing it”, with allocation criteria at stake. “This would have a social virtue,” he slips, while recognizing the need to consult beforehand with the Société d’Encouragement de Bordeaux which has a long lease for the organization of horse races (29 meetings per year). In addition, he announces more urgent priorities to be resolved immediately, such as the overhaul of the gardens in the Godard sector. “We need to recover illegally occupied plots in this area. We are working on this with Bordeaux Métropole. »
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