On the Île de la Cité, Paris town hall intends to renovate the flower market by 2028

It is a “dusty” haven of greenery in the heart of Paris: the ancient flower market on the Île de la Cité will be renovated by 2028, the town hall announced on Tuesday, which hopes to convince the police headquarters to pedestrianize its paths. Palisades, unharmonious gates or fences, asymmetrical extensions and a general impression of anarchy... In the cradle of the capital, the flower market halls built in the 1920s offer the paradoxical image of a heavily monitored site - prefecture and commercial court overlook it, the Town Hall is on the other side of the Seine - and yet neglected.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo's left-wing majority has been talking about the renovation of the site, renamed Reine-Elizabeth-II since the sovereign's visit in 2014, for many years. “We have decided,” rejoiced the deputy (PCF) for trade Nicolas Bonnet-Oulaldj during a press point.

In the coming days, the town hall will destroy three cabins located on the quay, worthless since “built in the 1990s,” said Ariel Weil, mayor (PS) of Paris Center. The six halls forming three covered passages will then be renovated in turn from the second half of 2025 to 2028, “almost identically”, specified the first deputy Emmanuel Grégoire.

The 15 florists still present “will be able to stay” during the work, estimated at 8 million euros, and at its end, indicated Nicolas Bonnet-Oulaldj, who mentions the possible installation of a café or restaurant. However, Ariel Weil indicated, traders will have to give up the closed rooms built under the central glass roof, “in the middle of the halls”, so that they can regain their former beauty. “It’s going to take away a huge amount of space,” fears Chantal Somenzi, 74, who has been on the market since 1977. “They won’t lose any square meters,” promised them Ariel Weil, who intends to compensate with free spaces and aisles. pedestrianized.

This is the other subject for the town hall: convincing the police headquarters to close to traffic, and therefore to remove the parking spaces, the two lanes located between the pavilions. “It’s not done yet,” recognizes Ariel Weil, who anticipates a “showdown.”