The Nice – Côte d’Azur Metropolis adopted during the assembly – who saw rebellious elected officials leave the session – which was held on Thursday, November 7, its local program which was held last week its local housing program (PLH) 2024-2029.
A document “strategic” underlined Anthony Borré, first deputy mayor of Nice and president of Côte d'Azur Habitat, rapporteur of the deliberation.
Not only because it “commits us for the next six years”, as the elected official emphasized. No doubt also because the PLH is a major tool in the face of the housing crisis. The Metropolis wanted it at the same time”ambitious” et “realistic“, but also “innovative“.
Less than the recommendations of the regional chamber
The community wants to produce 2,800 new housing units over the next six years. New constructions, but not only that. Social, but not only.
“An objective that corresponds to the particularity of our territory“, defended Anthony Borré. Even if in the ranks of the opposition, Jean-Christophe Picard, recalled that “the Regional Chamber of Accounts recommends, for its part, producing 3,902 per year, to respect the objectives of Law SRU 5 (1)”.
For the elected environmentalist, who underlined that “12 municipalities in the Metropolis have just been ordered to pay heavy fines for more than 11 million – including 7 million for Nice alone – for non-compliance with the law SRU”, the account is therefore not there.
Except that a few minutes earlier, his group had criticized the president of the Metropolis, Christian Estrosi, for his policy of “concreting“. “Welcome to absurdity“, castigated the first deputy of Nice in return.
The Metropolis' housing plan does not only provide for new housing.
Rehabilitation, fight against vacant housing
The community expects a net creation of 1,050 real estate properties per year. To achieve its production objective, it is also focusing on the rehabilitation of the existing park, the renewal of the city on itself thanks in particular to elevations, the first project of which within the Côte d'Azur Habitat park will be launched at the Saint-Philippe residence in Nice, or by continuing the fight against vacant housing.
“We are committed to putting 900 back on the market“, announced Anthony Borré, whose regulation of furnished tourist accommodation is also one of the areas of battle. Moreover, he does not exclude activating the weapon of the establishment of quotas which the law now allows and which, according to him, “can be an interesting and potentially adapted response” in certain areas such as Old Nice.
More, “because social must remain a step“, the Metropolis does not intend to create only supervised housing. Out of a target of 2,800 apartments per year, only 40% will be dedicated to this sector and the same amount in the free sector.
The remaining 20% concerns “affordable” housing and must serve as a transition gate. Finally, the typology of these creations must correspond to demand and will be made up of “35% small units” and “15% type 4 and more”.
One allocation for sixteen applications
It remains to be seen whether this local housing program will be sufficient to resolve the housing problem on the Côte d'Azur. Particularly for the most precarious.
Opposition elected official Jean-Christophe Picard doubts this after reading the results of the partnership plan for managing the demand for social housing.
“We learn in this annual report that in 2023, there were 1,833 housing allocations for 29,326 requests, or approximately 1 allocation for 16 requests… This is worse than in 2022“, he laments.
For him, the objectives are not up to the challenges since the thresholds set in this new PLH are lower than those of the previous one. Particularly in terms of social housing.
“A necessary evil“, estimates Philippe Vardon on the far right of the hemicycle, “provided that they benefit French families“.
And that they do not become a constraint for municipalities in the Metropolis such as Colomars which this program could transform into a “dormitory city”.
1. The SRU law “requires municipalities with more than 3,500 inhabitants which belong to agglomerations or intercommunalities of more than 50,000 inhabitants including at least one municipality with more than 15,000 inhabitants to have at least, within their stock of main residences , of: 25% social housing; 20% social housing in less tense areas.”
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