• The town of Carnon, one of the last bastions of free parking on the Hérault coast, has decided to charge for parking, from June.
  • "I'm not against motorists," says Yvon Bourrel (various left), the mayor of Mauguio-Carnon. I want to put order in a public space that is completely embolized in the summer, and even some weekends. »
  • Opposition politicians and residents are revolting against this decision. Not because tourists will have to put their hands in their pockets. But rather because they too will have to pay, all year round. And at rates they deem far too high.

Carnon (Hérault) was one of the last bastions of gratuity, on the Hérault coast. If by luck you were lucky enough to find a place in this ultra-popular seaside resort in the summer, parking was free for everyone. But, like its neighbor Palavas-les-Flots six years ago, the town has yielded to the sirens of the parking meter: from June 1st, before going sunbathing on the beaches of Carnon, it will be necessary to pay a parking ticket. The decision was voted on February 13 at the last municipal council.

Depending on the zone, motorists will have to pay between 1.20 and 6 euros per hour. In the red zone, where parking in the summer is the most tricky, they will still be entitled to 30 free minutes, before having to go to the checkout. "I am not against motorists," Yvon Bourrel (various left), the mayor of Mauguio-Carnon, told 20 Minutes. His idea is to reshare the street, now including soft transport. And to appease the station. "The goal is not to pressure people," notes the elected official. I just want to put order in a public space that is completely embolized in the summer, and even some weekends the rest of the year. »

"Palavas-les-Flots, La Grande-Motte and Le Grau-du-Roi have not experienced a disenchantment"

The town hall will invest 1 million euros in the installation of parking meters. But, each year, according to his first estimates, parking should bring him about 500,000 euros. A rather welcome financial windfall, while the municipality is engaged in a profound requalification of its seaside resort. Because Yvon Bourrel does not want to see these developments "supported, only, by taxpayers. It seems acceptable to me that the user, when he comes, can be the contributor, too. Remaining on a model where the taxpayer is the only one to assume the entirety of a service that has not specifically intended him", it is inconceivable.



Can Montpellier residents, and tourists, draw a line definitively on Carnon, if they have to pay for parking? No, assures the mayor. A specialized firm, to which the municipality appealed, found that "contrary to popular belief, Palavas-les-Flots, La Grande-Motte and Le Grau-du-Roi have not experienced disenchantment on the part of people", when free parking was abandoned in these coastal municipalities, says Yvon Bourrel. "People say, 'At least we'll get a place!' »

"We are going to suicide"

This decision provoked, in this resort, although quiet in winter, a wind of revolt. If many locals are complaining, it is not because tourists will have to put their hands in their pockets. But rather because they too will have to pay. Serge Wolniewicz, president of the collective Citizens of Carnon, is one of the spearheads of this anger. "We are not necessarily for the total free parking in Carnon", because the financial windfall that the passages to the parking meter represent can possibly "improve the daily life of the inhabitants all year round", confides this Carnonnais to 20 Minutes.

But, he laments, the annual subscriptions offered for residents are far too expensive. For individuals, it will cost 20 euros for a car, 100 euros for the second, and 200 euros for an additional car. For professionals, it is even more expensive: 100 euros for the first vehicle and 200 euros for a second. "We want to set up the same rates as in Palavas-les-Flots, that is to say 20 euros per year and per vehicle, for individuals or professionals, continues Serge Wolniewicz. These are reasonable rates. Otherwise, we are going to suicide: Carnon will become a dead station, in a short time. The collective Citizens of Carnon hopes to "start a discussion [with the town hall]," says its president. Otherwise, we will start proceedings in court. »


An appeal to the administrative court

Alternative citoyenne did not wait: the opposition group in the city council filed, Monday, an appeal against this measure before the administrative court. "In the summer, we know we have to do something," said Marianne Pelletier (no label), one of the elected representatives of this group, at the municipal council meeting on February 13. But winter, for this city councillor, is useless. "The visitors to Carnon, in winter, all year round, are very much families and friends, often seniors," added Daniel Bourguet (no label), a member of the same group. These people, how are they going to do it? Are they going to have to pay, dearly, every time they come to visit them? »

Alternative citoyenne asks, in particular, that parking be paid only from June 15 to September 15, when the station is crowded. And that the parking of the beaches, where the funfair was located, remains free, all year round. These opponents of the mayor also demand, like the collective Citizens of Carnon, that a flat rate of 20 euros per vehicle be set up. And that's it. But for Yvon Bourrel, 20 euros for the first car, then 100 euros for a second, it's not that expensive. "For a family that has two cars, this represents 10 euros per month, notes the elected official. Does this really seem excessive to you? But the elected official is open to discussions with the inhabitants of Carnon and professionals. "We will make improvements," he said. Once amended, the modalities of the implementation of paid parking will be reviewed at the next municipal council. But until then, the debate promises to be heated.

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