Mayor Gérard Spinelli has refused two building permits for housing development projects in the heights of Beausoleil. Here’s why… 

In the heights of Beausoleil, near the Route des Serres and the Chemin des Rainettes, plans for a big housing project were being cooked up by local developers. The scheme, according to Monaco Matin, was to build 296 dwellings on 1.5 hectares of land in a part of town that currently houses more olive and fruit trees than people.  

Outcries from the local community regarding environmental damage and a lack of infrastructure in place as well as concerns over traffic and loss of tranquillity were vocally made, but Mayor Gérard Spinelli initially remained quiet.  

MAYOR TAKES A STAND 

Now, according to a report from Monaco Matin, Mayor Spinelli has made his thoughts clear, officially refusing to sign off on the two building permits required to realise the project.  

The developers, Ogic and Munegu Real Estate, had at first been granted permission by the municipality in February 2021 for 109 housing units, which has not been contested. It was two further permits for 187 units that came under fire and have now subsequently been blocked, according to the local press.  

“These are points of non-compliance with the PLU (Local Urban Planning rules) linked to the location in relation to the road network, the height rules, the consideration of the presence of the Vallon de la Rousse located near the project [and] also to public domain,” explained Spinelli to the paper. 

Beausoleil’s Director General of Services, Jean-Luc Dalcher, delved a bit further into the complexity of the situation, stating, “We cannot build on the public domain, except with the prior agreement of the community, and such agreement has not been requested or obtained.”  

RESIDENTS REACTIONS 

The residents who opposed the project are reportedly ecstatic.  

“It is with a certain jubilation and relief that we welcomed the news from the mayor himself on the refusal of a building permit,” the collective of the Route des Serres, the organisation who bucked against the project, told Monaco Matin. “This is a victory for ecological balance and rationality. We thank all the stakeholders mobilised, their insights and arguments, in having participated in this decision.” 

As for the mayor, he stated he will not be drawn into a debate and that his focus is, and has been, for the betterment of the town.  

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Photo source: Ville de Beausoleil