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The City of Paris is adopting measures to protect independent cinemas

undefined undefined 17 décembre 2024 undefined 17h00

The Editor

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According to information from the Parisien, the new urban planning plan for the city includes a section aimed at protecting independent cinemas in Paris from "speculative appetites." The goal is to prevent their closure, especially since several establishments have already shut their doors in Paris, notably on the Champs-Élysées.  

More than 400 movie theaters, around 500 films showing each week, over 27 million spectators each year: Paris is renowned as one of the best cultural cities, and the density of cinemas it hosts plays a big part in that. While most establishments are chain cinemas - Pathé, MK2, UGC, CGR - the remaining handful of independent cinemas is under threat from real estate speculation. This is a phenomenon that the Paris Council aimed to tackle by adopting an unprecedented measure in its new local urban planning plan (PLU). 


Incorporating the Specificity of Cinemas into Law

If over the last 30 years, Paris has gone from 20 to 4 cinemas on the Champs-Élysées, it’s no coincidence: "A cinema needs a fair amount of space, and its profitability per square meter is far lower than any other commercial activity," explains Michel Gomez, the cinema mission delegate at the Paris city hall, to the Parisien. Thus, until recently, if a cinema went bankrupt, an investor could take it over and turn it into any type of business; they were not obligated to continue its cultural activity. But that was before.

the brilliant initiative from the Paris Council, located mostly on the left. 

To make a difference, the councilors took advantage of the revision of the urban planning code. Now, certain specifics can be included in the PLU, allowing for their protection. Small and medium-sized farms have been classified as "housing"; thus, landlords or potential future buyers will not be able to convert these spaces into offices or set up other types of commercial activities. The French operation networks are not affected, as they are not, or little, threatened. 


What about Le Luminor? 

What's the situation with the Luminor, the last independent cinema in the Marais, which has been facing closure since 2020? It's hard to say if this new local plan can save it, no matter how innovative it is. The problem lies in its location: "The cinema is located in one of the only areas in Paris where the rules set by the local plan do not apply," laments Michel Gomez in the newspaper.

The measures recently adopted haven't been integrated into the preservation and enhancement plan (PSMV) that applies to the Marais yet: a "complete overhaul of this plan" would be necessary to generalize these elements, which often takes a few years. The only hope, put forth by the socialist majority, is having the case taken up by the Ministry of Culture, which is currently on hold due to the government's reshuffle.