“No to concrete”, proclaim the demonstrators this Saturday morning, in front of the town hall of Canet. Several dozen opponents gathered to denounce a real estate project that is to see the light of day on the site of the former Miami campsitenear the port. “It’s an ecological crime”, according to Céline Lafrou de la Colonge. Resident of Canet, she set up the collective “Squirrels in the Trees”, two months ago. She and more than 1,200 people have signed a petition to ask the town hall to oppose this project.
The owner of the Miami campsite sold the land several months ago to a private developer, who plans to build 65 homes, 30% of which are social housing. “We want a public park”insists Céline Lafrou de la Colonge. “There are paths, trees, we can put benches, swings”.
This project is a new concretization of a space that could have become an island of freshness according to opponents. Especially since this place is full of animals, red squirrels, hedgehogs, birds. Pierreline lives just opposite the campsite, she is heartbroken to imagine this place transformed: “I see doves, magpies, we have lots of swallows that come to eat the insects. We are appalled to see that everything is going to be destroyed.”
A green project according to the town hall
For its part, the town hall of Canet wants to qualify. The municipality met the real estate developer, who has undertaken to respect certain conditions. “We asked him to preserve as many trees as possible, also to have a replanting program for what has been removed”specifies Marc Benassis, deputy for town planning at the town hall of Canet.
He also adds that “the real estate project will only represent 30% of the footprint of the remaining land. For me, there is no ecological risk”, insists the chosen one. He also adds that revegetation is at the heart of the City’s concerns : “Three parks will soon see the light of day”explains Marc Benassis.