By
Ivan CAPECCHI
Published on
June 17, 2024 at 12:48 p.m.
; updated June 17, 2024 at 1:27 p.m.
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The cloth continues to burn between fairground and the municipality of Strasbourg regarding the organization of the 2024 edition of the Saint-Jean Fair.
While this is due to begin on June 26, the fairgrounds mentioned in our columns on Sunday the possibility that it would simply not take place.
In particular: the land sizeconsidered too small by the fairgrounds and which cannot accommodate them all.
“We don’t want to annoy the people of Strasbourg but the town hall understands”
Enzo is in a white truck at the head of the pack. He is demonstrating this Monday because “there will not be enough places for fairground workers”, he laments. “We cannot leave our family aside. We have mouths to feed,” confides the young showman. “We don’t want to annoy the people of Strasbourg but want the town hall to understand,” he adds.
“We are here because there are 179 fairground workers and the promised location at Deux-Rives is planned for 109 fairground workers,” explains Jean-Christophe, on board a truck with Mimile at the wheel. “I have my place, but there’s no way I’m going to settle down if the other colleagues don’t have it,” he continues.
Jean-Christophe says he is ready to demonstrate “all week”, if necessary. “Normally there, we would already be setting up the rides,” he emphasizes.
What is the conflict between the fairgrounds and the City of Strasbourg?
The Saint-Jean Fair, which took place until the 2023 edition in the Wacken district, must move from this site, because it is a sector in full transformation via the “Archipel 2” project. The final drop-off point for the Saint-Jean Fair has already been identified. It will be located at the entrance to the Plaine des Bouchers, within an area called “festive plain”, which still needs to be developed, which will not be done before at least 2026. Until then, the Saint-Jean Fair must settle on temporary, transitional land. In February 2023, the City announced through a press release its intention to relocate the fair to the Zénith-Plaine des Sports sector for the 2024-2025 editions. This solution was refused by the fairgrounds. Since then, fairground workers and elected officials of the City of Strasbourg have been in open conflict and blaming each other through the media. In May, they seemed to have reached an agreement to install the Foire Saint-Jean in the Port du Rhin district, at the “P1 du Jardin des Deux Rives” car park and the former “R1” and “R2” car parks. But what has been blocking lately is the size of the land, considered too small by the fairgrounds. What’s more, residents of the neighborhood published a petition to say no to the installation of the fair near their homes.
12 p.m.: arrival of the fairgrounds in Strasbourg
Around noon this Monday, the fairgrounds arrived at the level of the quay Fustel-de-Coulanges in Strasbourg, where are positioned gendarmes And police officers.
According to fairground workers interviewed on site, they plan to go to the Jardin des Deux Rives, where the Saint-Jean Fair is to be held this year.
They also plan to blockade certain areas of the city, although it is not known where at the moment.
Snail operation and traffic jams on the M35
This Monday morning, the fairgrounds carried out a snail operationgenerating significant traffic disruptions on theA4 and the M35in the Paris-Strasbourg direction, according to Info Trafic Bas-Rhin.
The convoy had Strasbourg as its base.
With Camille Bresler
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