There is nothing or almost nothing left of the Aktya building (the corporate real estate agency for greater Besançon) ravaged by an impressive fire on Sunday evening in the Témis district of Besançon. The intervention of around fifty firefighters made it possible to prevent the fire from spreading to neighboring buildings. The damage from the blow was limited, with some broken windows and melted blinds.
The Témis agency of France Travail (formerly Pôle emploi) is closed until further notice. Also affected were a law firm and the premises of the savings bank located on the other side. As for the Claude Nicolas Ledoux high school located just opposite, no consequences, classes took place normally this beginning of the week, only playtime was held indoors this Monday due to the pungent smell of smoke but this morning back to normal.
As for the origin of the fire, an investigation was opened; in the neighborhood several people mentioned the regular presence of squatters in the unoccupied building.
Nicolas Waltefaugle
Hundreds of thousands of euros in damage
The building destroyed by the fire was the property of Aktya (a mixed economy company which owns numerous factory premises throughout Franche-Comté but mainly in Greater Besançon). It had been unoccupied for two years. Previously it was occupied by the company VIX specializing in electronics. Currently undergoing deconstruction, the project was due to be completed by June. The recovered materials, particularly wood, were then to be sold in a materials library and generate significant revenue. Add to this the loss of construction site for the company responsible for the deconstruction, the damage could amount to several hundred thousand euros.
A new building dedicated to microtechnology
In the coming weeks, we will have to wait for the insurance procedure before considering a complete cleaning of the land. a soil analysis will then be carried out to see if it has not suffered or if it has not been polluted because ultimately the site must accommodate a new building of 3,100 square meters (twice as large as the old one). ) dedicated to microtechnology which was to be delivered in 2026 provided of course that the fire does not postpone construction.
