The billboard proclaims it: work has started on this land on rue de Versigny, opposite RTE in Villers-lès-Nancy, and off-plan apartments are for sale by Batigère. But if the excavators did start clearing the ground in mid-May, the site was urgently suspended by order of the administrative court on June 8. And it is not about to resume.
Contested in court by “La salamandre de l’Asnée”, an association of residents and environmental defenders, this real estate project has now come to a halt following the decision on the merits, officially rendered this Friday morning: the judges have canceled the two prefectural decrees, granted on November 16, 2018, which then authorized the social landlord to build 60 social housing units and 16 for home ownership.
During the hearing on October 6, the court therefore accepted the arguments put forward for nearly five years by the association, which entered into resistance to defend various protected species, including the spotted salamander, but also certain birds.
–
Enough social housing
“Contrary to what Batigère was advancing”, sums up Marc Hertert, vice-president of the association, “the court initially considered that the residents did indeed have an interest in taking action against this project, which would harm the environment and living environment. The court also refused the exemption requested by Batigère via the Prefecture, to move or destroy a protected species for an imperative reason of public interest, in this case that of building sufficient social housing. “
The SRU law indeed requires municipalities with more than 3,500 inhabitants to offer at least 20% of housing of this type. “In the file presented to the court, the prefecture specified that Villers-lès-Nancy had only 16.94% of social housing. However, this was a figure for 2009… ”
As a counterweight, a 2017 municipal council report showed that Villers was on the right track on this point, the court finally ruling that “alternative solutions were possible for Batigère, with other land available for construction on the territory of Greater Nancy. “
–
Objective: protect the land
If the time is therefore for satisfaction in the ranks of the association, the fight is not over. It remains to be seen in fact whether Batigère will appeal: he has two months to do so, “but sincerely, even on appeal, I do not see how they could go back on our demonstration”, estimates Me Francois Zind. The association’s lawyer even wants the 6.300m2 plot to quickly return to its original state.
Then, “our objective is that this land, like the one which is right next to the territory of Laxou, is no longer constructible”, hopes Marc Hertert. “The site is home to the Asnée stream, and all around it, flora and fauna to be preserved. “
–
