No decision has been made yet, but it may well be that the arthouse cinema initially planned on the site of the Cité de la Gastronomie will never see the light of day. Originally, the manager of the Eldorado had set up a project but it was delayed due to a funding problem. As a result, another activity could be established instead.
A project that has taken a lot of delay
Two cinemas on the same site, that was the town hall’s objective for the Cité de la Gastronomie in Dijon. One of the two was to be an art house cinema. The chosen project is led by Mathias Chouquer, the manager of the Eldorado cinema. A colossal project that requires a loan of 2.3 million euros.
The town hall of Dijon participated at 10% in this adventure, but, it is the private investors who do not follow. “Our project has fallen behind due to Covid-19 but our current difficulty is our main investor who left us at the end of last year”, explains Matias Chouquer. Because of this withdrawal, the manager must find 500,000 euros as soon as possible. He assures that other investors are in discussion, but it will take a few more weeks to know if the project will be possible or not.
The town hall does not rule out setting up another activity
The manager of the Eldorado remains confident, but this is not the case for François Deseille, the deputy mayor in charge of the Cité de la Gastronomie. For him, the investments will never arrive in time: “we are waiting to see what it can give, the ball is in his court”. Even if the will of the town hall is to have a second cinema as a priority, the plans could evolve “if it can’t be done, other things will be done: maybe a cinema, maybe an enlargement of the first or maybe something else”, assures François Deseille. Other activities related to gastronomy or culture could even be considered if other projects are selected.
In any case, the priority of the town hall for the moment is the opening on May 6. There will be no second cinema or other activity until then. The final decision will be made after this date.