Nîmes: Halles butchers still closed after seven months due to ongoing works
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Two butchers at the Halles de Nîmes market have had their stalls closed for seven months due to delays in renovation work. They are awaiting necessary sanitary and safety authorizations to reopen.
The Halles de Nîmes market in Nîmes, France. (Image: Placeholder)
Two stallholders at the Halles de Nîmes market have had their shutters down for seven months. Dust, blocked pipes, and covered fire sprinklers are preventing the two butcher shops from obtaining the necessary health and safety authorizations to reopen. On Wednesday, August 20th, they asked the town hall to intervene with the project manager, Socri.
Stallholders worried
Laurent Assenat’s butcher shop was supposed to be closed for three months due to the dust from the ongoing works. Across from him, Brugier’s butcher shop also remains closed. “The refrigerators are full of water. In eight visits from bailiffs, everything was fine, and for the last two visits, the water appeared. Don’t tell me they have nothing to do with it,” says David Bruguier, accusing Socri of ignoring their concerns.
Another long-term concern involves the escalators above the two butcher shops. the fire sprinklers have been covered with casing. Valérie Assenat worries, “If they go off, the walls will be soaked with water, and it will fall on us? On our customers?”
Furthermore, some late payment penalties have not been paid. The treasuries of these two stallholders, closed for seven months, are reportedly in difficulty. Once again, the town hall and the company are passing the buck.
The town hall “has met it’s commitments”
From the town hall’s perspective, Christophe Pio, the elected official in charge of the Halles de Nîmes, explains that the special building permit allows for work to be carried out while maintaining commercial activity. “This permit allows the stalls to remain open. Everyone else has returned to work. I don’t see why they couldn’t,” explains the elected official. He adds, “We have followed the work with my counterpart in charge of buildings, and the municipality has respected the procedure signed by the stallholders, us, and the company.” Socri, when contacted, declined to respond to requests for comment.
In this new episode of the Halles de Nîmes saga, there is some good news: the work and finishing touches should be completed by the end of September, just before the opening of the new Galeries Lafayette in early October.
