Agde: creation of a health center in Cape Town, doubling of lanes on the 612 departmental road, repair of 50 km of roads in three years… Gilles D'Ettore takes stock of the various municipal projects

The mayor of Agde and president of the Hérault-Mediterranean agglomeration Gilles D'Ettore takes a look at the projects that will make up the year 2024. FREE MIDI – MICHEL DESNOS

At the start of the year and before sending his best wishes to the population on Thursday January 18 at the Palais des Congrès in Cap d'Agde, the mayor of Agde answered questions from Midi Free.

You will present next Thursday at the Palais des Congrès a series of municipal projects which will punctuate the year 2024.

That’s right, in the form of thirty concrete measures that I will explain to the Agathois. You know, I start from the principle that there are no small and large projects. Everyday achievements are as important as projects that require more resources.

The fact remains that Agde is a city under construction…

In the heart of the city in particular, where we will complete the first section of the Promenade this year and, we hope, obtain all the authorizations for the footbridge over the Hérault, which will allow access to Château Laurens. We are putting a lot of energy into the historic center, especially since the construction of the Multimodal Exchange Hub (PEM) at the SNCF station will also begin in 2024 and believe me, that will be the case. is a huge project, which will notably require moving the railway tracks! With the renovation of the Riquet hotel, on the Canal du Midi and the Mediterranean project, where decontamination operations are imminent, we will advance the entrance to the city until then.

Even if for the Mediterranean, nothing is simple.

We are in what I call an administrative syringe. With the Canal du Midi classified by Unesco, heritage buildings inspected by the Bâtiments de France, we even have bats present on the site and which must be protected! All this to say that with the necessary authorizations to obtain, we do not have complete control over the schedule. But we hope for the first achievements before the end of the mandate (in 2026, Editor's note).

You announced that your fourth mandate would be that of the heart of the city. But Cap d’Agde is 50 years old and in great need of investment…

We are aware of this. The work on Place du Môle has been launched and by the end of the mandate, we will have completed the renovation of Allée de la Flânerie. It has also not escaped you that the quays of Beaupré and La Trinquette are currently being rebuilt by Sodéal (the mixed economy company which manages the ports of Agde, Editor's note).

You mention Sodéal. The recent report from the Regional Chamber of Auditors on the management of the company was not kind. So much so that a return to municipal management was mentioned. Where are we ?

Already, the company is back on its feet, it’s important to know that. There was an unfortunate episode, which actually invites us to think about a legal transformation. We are carrying out this reflection with our co-shareholder of Caisse des Dépôts. But if we have to transform something, it will be towards more audiences. In what form (Semop, municipal management)? We look at the advantages and disadvantages.

In Cap d’Agde, no information filters out concerning the future of the old Palais des Congrès. Can you tell us more ?

We are working with Hervé Van Twembeke (Agathois business leader, boss of California Promotion) on a project which would combine housing, association premises and a health center, which is needed in the resort. In addition, in connection with the footbridge which spans the Boulevard des Gentilhomme and the Flânerie, we would create a sort of aerial square, with a restaurant.

During neighborhood meetings last spring, your road management was often criticized. What do you plan to do about it ?

Three million euros of investments are planned over the next three years, or the equivalent of 50 km of roads. We will start with the Grau d’Agde, in addition to the route de Saint-Vincent, which is a project in its own right. We notably voted for a 15% increase in the housing tax on second homes (which will bring 1.27 million euros to the City in 2024, Editor's note) to partly finance these investments.

The partial census carried out in Agde last year shows a slight drop in the number of inhabitants. This worries you ?

Absolutely not, that’s not even a subject. The opposition has often wanted to make the Agathois believe that the population was going to explode, we see that this is not the case. We are very attentive to the building permits we issue. We are also seeing an increase in the number of second homes (around 33,000, Editor’s note) and I am delighted about that. A city, if it no longer invests, it dies. And I'd rather we be envious than afraid.

Other projects to come

Doubling of the departmental road 612
"Kléber Mesquida (president of the department of Hérault) wrote to me to inform me that he was going to make himself available in February and March to launch the first consultations which will lead to the first works to double the departmental road 612."  While the direct surroundings of the Tamarissière, Guiraudette and Rochelongue interchanges were tree-lined at the end of the year by the services of the department of Hérault, the first phase of this major project will concern the part located between the bridge over the Hérault and the entrance to Cap d’Agde.

A nursery on the Littoral
"We are missing a few places to accommodate the children and I have always said that the City will not leave anyone behind. We are therefore going to launch the construction of a fifth municipal crèche on land that the State is selling to us, near the Littoral school." That is, thirty additional places for small.

New village hall
"The demolition of the Brescou block (in which the current village hall is located, Editor's note) is imminent. Construction of the new multipurpose room will begin in 2024, with 16 months of work to complete." It will be located next to the old Tournesol swimming pool.

The “pegasus” completed at Grau d’Agde
"We will finish the project “Pegasus” this year, by installing two-thirds of the underwater modules that remain to be installed, in order to enrich the Place du Grau d’Agde."

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