The Minister of Culture Rachida Dati, mayor of the 7th arrondissement of Paris, announced on Wednesday November 27 the creation of a committee to protect the entire “Paris, banks of the Seine” and its surroundings, an area classified as heritage world of UNESCO.
In a press release posted on her together “.
The “banks of the Seine” were listed by UNESCO in 1991 and its perimeter was extended in 2024 to reach more than 3,600 ha. From the Eiffel Tower to Notre-Dame via Place de la Concorde, it now covers the banks of the river from the Austerlitz viaduct (13th arrondissement) to the Bir-Hakeim bridge and the Île aux Cygnes (15th arrondissement). ).
Also included among others are the Louvre and the Tuileries, half of the Champs-Élysées, the Madeleine, the Esplanade des Invalides and the Champ de Mars. As Rachida Dati indicates in her press release, this protected territory concerns “the majority of districts”; ten in total (1st, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 12th, 13th, 15th, 16th).
According to the Minister of Culture, this initiative will make “any demolition, damage or alteration of this exceptional heritage” impossible. “For the first time, the heritage of Paris will be protected,” certifies the city councilor.
If heritage defense associations have welcomed this decision, which some consider to be “a first step” and “a long-awaited initiative”, on the side of the municipal majority, it is not the same story.
The City of Paris, which adopted a new local town planning plan a few days ago intended in part to protect this heritage, denounces political exploitation on the part of Rachida Dati who announced in January 2024, just after becoming a minister, that she would run for mayor of Paris.
” Ridiculous ! But it is time to remind Madame Dati that a ministry does not have to be used for personal electoral ambitions,” pointed out Rémi Féraud (PS), senator from Paris and recently a candidate for the 2026 municipal elections supported by the outgoing mayor Anne Hidalgo.
The announcement of this committee comes a few days after Rachida Dati's request to have the Marie Curie laboratory classified while the municipality and regional directorate of cultural affairs have just ratified the building permit providing for the encapsulation of the neighboring Sources pavilion in a new building.
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