Paris-Plages ("Paris Beaches"; until 2006 Paris-Plage in the singular) is a plan run by the office of the mayor of Paris that creates temporary artificial beaches each summer along the river Seine in the centre of Paris , and, since 2007, along the Bassin de la Villette in the northeast of Paris. Every July and August, roadways on the banks of the Seine are closed off and host various activities, including sandy beaches and palm trees.
31-481: French city-dwellers traditionally escape to the seaside or the countryside during the summer, especially in August. Paris is avoided, as the weather is unpleasantly hot and humid, and the centre has many tourists. Nevertheless, each summer many residents are obliged to remain in the city, however reluctantly. The Paris-Plages scheme was instigated in 2002 by Bertrand Delanoë , the newly elected Socialist Party mayor, as
62-443: A two-round system with a majority bonus . A party list which garners an absolute majority in the first round of an election in which at least 25% of registered voters participates automatically wins half of all seats in the arrondissement, with the remaining half distributed proportionally using the D'Hondt method to all lists receiving over 5% of the vote, including the winning list. If no party list meets these requirements in
93-515: A Muslim immigrant, Azedine Berkane, who reportedly told police that "he hated politicians, the Socialist Party, and homosexuals." Before being taken to hospital, Delanoë ordered that the festivities continue. Delanoë's wound was not life-threatening and he left the hospital after about two weeks. Azedine Berkane was eventually permitted to leave the psychiatric hospital where he had been a patient after his doctors no longer considered him
124-573: A century old. Paris and its environs were always governed directly by the highest French polity of the time: the Crown before the French Revolution , and a state-appointed préfet (governing the Seine département ) afterwards. The office of mayor of Paris existed for brief periods during the 18th and 19th centuries, but was not an institution of government before 1977. From the creation of
155-627: A haven for relieving the misery of those cooped up in the sweltering city. Initially there was a single beach on the Rive Droite . In 2006, a second beach was added on the Rive Gauche , and the scheme's name changed from singular to plural. Unlike many beaches in France, topless sunbathing is not permitted. Swimming in the Seine is also not permitted, for safety reasons. The scheme has proven
186-551: A law merging the functions of the commune and department into the City of Paris ( Ville de Paris ), which came into effect on 1 January 2019. The modern administrative organization of Paris still retains some traces of its previous incarnation as the government of the Seine département . France's national government still controls the Paris Police Prefecture ( Préfecture de police ), which also has authority over
217-480: A major success; the number of visitors has grown each year and topped four million in 2007. Every season, new features are added. These include a shuttle ferry linking the two riverbanks, a floating swimming pool , and another beach area at La Villette , in the northeast corner of the city. The beaches were built free of charge by LafargeHolcim from 2002 to 2017, when the city of Paris discontinued their contract in retaliation for LafargeHolcim's proposal to build
248-463: A threat. However, in early April 2007, he failed to keep a scheduled appointment with his doctors. Paris police recaptured him on May 22. He was returned to the psychiatric facility and placed into a high-security unit. The failure to secure the 2012 Summer Olympics for Paris on 6 July 2005 was Delanoë's first major setback as mayor. In the aftermath of the defeat in his Olympic bid, he accused British prime minister Tony Blair of unduly influencing
279-666: Is divided into 17 electoral districts representing the 20 municipal arrondissements ( arrondissements municipaux ) in which voters simultaneously elect members of the district council ( conseil d'arrondissement ) and city council ( conseil municipal ). After the 2020 municipal election, arrondissements 1 , 2 , 3 & 4 were merged into a single electoral district called "Paris Centre". No district elects fewer than 10 district members and 3 council members, nor more than 40 district members and 18 council members. There are 354 district council members and 163 council members in all. A number of members from each district council — roughly half
310-459: Is the deliberative body responsible for governing Paris , the capital of France . It possesses both the powers of a municipal council ( conseil municipal ) and those of a departmental council ( conseil départemental ) for the département de Paris , as defined by the so-called PLM Law ( Loi PLM ) of 1982 that redefined the governance of Paris, Lyon and Marseille (hence the PLM acronym ). Paris
341-463: Is the only territorial collectivity in France to be both a commune and a département . The Mayor of Paris presides over the Council of Paris and therefore holds the powers of mayor and of president of the departmental council. There are currently 163 councillors for Paris. Although the history of Paris spans millennia, that of its municipal government, in its present form, is less than half
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#1732791178652372-471: The Paris Fire Brigade , for example, and has jurisdiction extending to the petite couronne (small corona or halo) of Paris, the three bordering départements ( Seine-Saint-Denis , Hauts de Seine , and Val de Marne ) for some operations such as fire protection and rescue operations . Paris has no municipal police force, although it does have its own brigade of traffic wardens . The commune
403-590: The Presidential election in 2012 . However, this plan suffered a setback in November 2008 when he lost the race for the party leadership to Lille mayor Martine Aubry . On 22 December 2008, The New York Times published a letter attributed to Delanoë criticizing Caroline Kennedy 's candidacy for the United States Senate seat vacated by Hillary Clinton . The newspaper later admitted that
434-676: The University of Toulouse . According to Who's Who in France he has a diploma in economics. Delanoë has been involved in politics since the age of twenty-three as the secretary of the Socialist federation in Aveyron . He was first elected to the Council of Paris in 1977. In 1993, he became the head of the city's Socialist Party branch. In 1995, he was elected to the Senate , where he
465-448: The quality of life , reduce pollution, and cut down on vehicle traffic within the city (including a plan for a non-polluting tramway to ease Parisian traffic) and pedestrian malls . He helped introduce a program called Vélib' (a portmanteau of "vélo" and "libre" meaning " free bicycles ") which gave Parisians access to inexpensive rental bicycles available in stations all around Paris. The program has been enormously successful despite
496-419: The "Paris Beach" ( Paris-Plages ) on the banks of the Seine every summer in order to give Parisians who could not take a regular vacation a chance to relax, sunbathe and build sandcastles in the center of Paris. The program, especially popular with families with children, has been in place since 2002, and has since been copied by many other international cities. As mayor, Delanoë's goals were to improve
527-475: The French Republic . Delanoë won the mayorship of Paris at the head of a coalition of Socialists , Greens and Communists , over the conservative candidates Jean Tiberi and Philippe Séguin , who were unable to resolve their differences and thereby split the conservative vote. This success in a city which had traditionally been a stronghold of the right until the end of the 20th century was made all
558-512: The age of 11, Delanoë witnessed the crisis of Bizerte between France and newly independent Tunisia. Bertrand Delanoë moved back to France with his family following Tunisian independence ; after the military base in Bizerte was closed in 1963, Delanoë's family broke up. His mother came to live in Rodez , Aveyron with her son. After leaving school, Delanoë is said to have started studies in law at
589-568: The effect that condom use was unhelpful or even counter-productive in the fight against AIDS. Ahead of the Socialist Party's 2012 convention in Toulouse , Delanoë endorsed Harlem Désir as candidate to succeed Aubry at the party's leadership. Delanoë was stabbed on 5 October 2002 during the Nuit Blanche , a night of festivities in Paris, while mingling with the public. His assailant was
620-523: The fact that it still has a few logistical problems to be worked out. He outlined a plan for an autolib, whereby small cars would be shared. He was reelected in 2008 (57.7%) for a new six-year-term (2008–2014). Ahead of the Socialist Party's 2008 convention in Reims , Delanoë publicly endorsed Martine Aubry as candidate to succeed François Hollande at the party's leadership. In 2009, Delanoë criticized statements by Pope Benedict XVI , which were of
651-432: The first round, a second round is scheduled a week later. All lists which have won over 10% of the vote in the first round are qualified to run in the second. In addition, any other lists which have won at least 5% of the vote in the first round can merge with qualified lists for the second, but are not required to do so. In the second round, only a plurality is needed to win the majority bonus. This electoral system means
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#1732791178652682-646: The late French superstar entertainer, Dalida . National Assembly of France Member of the National Assembly for Paris (26th constituency): 1981–1986. Elected in 1981. Senate of France Member of the Senate for Paris: 1995–2001 (resignation). Council of Paris Mayor of Paris: Elected in 2001. Reelected in 2008. Councillor of Paris: Elected in 1977. Reelected in 1983, 1989, 1995, 2001, 2008. Council of Paris Opposition : (66) Others : (3) The Council of Paris ( French : Conseil de Paris , [kɔ̃sɛj d(ə) paʁi] )
713-442: The letter, which had been sent by email, had not been properly verified, and was a fake. Delanoë was one of the first major French politicians to announce that he was gay, during a 1998 television interview (before being elected mayor). Although a long-time politician, Delanoë is visible at cultural affairs. He attends film festivals, and he is sometimes quoted in the media or appears on television to speak about his friendship with
744-468: The mayoral office in 1977 until 2019, Paris functioned as both a commune and as a département , and had a unique method for governing both; the Council of Paris, with the Mayor of Paris as its president, met either as a municipal council ( conseil municipal ) or as a departmental council ( conseil général / conseil départemental ) depending on the issue to be debated. In 2017, the National Assembly passed
775-469: The more striking by setbacks to the left in the 2001 municipal elections that occurred more generally. It has been partially attributed with the weariness of the Parisian public with respect to various scandals of corruption and graft in the preceding administrations. Delanoë was virtually unknown before the election of 2001, but soon gained fame for organising new and unusual events in Paris, such as
806-600: The result in order to secure the games in London. However, Delanoë's popularity in fact rose during July 2005. The French public appeared to have laid more of the blame on President Jacques Chirac, who allegedly said that "the only worse food than British food is Finnish" which is widely believed to have offended two Finnish members of the International Olympic Committee . Delanoë was said to be considering challenging then-current president Sarkozy in
837-585: The seats in each council, as well as those at the top of the party lists in those districts — are elected to and simultaneously serve as city council members, forming the municipal council called the Council of Paris. The council elects the Mayor of Paris the week after the municipal election, requiring an absolute majority of councillors in the first or second round, or by a plurality in the third round if necessary. The districts and city council are elected using closed party-list proportional representation in
868-495: The wall on the Mexico–United States border promised by U.S. President Donald Trump . The name "Paris-Plage" was trademarked in 2002. In August 2006, the mayor's office sued the commune of Le Touquet-Paris-Plage for impinging on the trademark by using the phrase "Paris-Plage" in its tourism marketing. This was greeted with scepticism, since the commune's name dated from 1912, based on earlier popular usage. The case
899-575: Was born 30 May 1950 in Tunis , at that time a protectorate of the French colonial empire , to a French mother and a French-Tunisian father. His father, a land surveyor , was atheist while his mother, a nurse, was Roman Catholic . At 6 years old, Delanoë became a member of the "Petits Chanteurs des Sables", a Christian choral group associated with the Petits Chanteurs à la Croix de Bois . At
930-522: Was dropped in 2008. [REDACTED] Media related to Paris Plages at Wikimedia Commons Bertrand Delano%C3%AB Bertrand Delanoë ( French: [bɛʁ.tʁɑ̃ də.la.nɔ.e] ; born 30 May 1950) is a French retired politician who served as Mayor of Paris from 2001 to 2014. A member of the Socialist Party (PS), he previously served in the National Assembly from 1981 to 1986 and Senate from 1995 until 2001. Delanoë
961-459: Was secretary of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence. Delanoë became Mayor of Paris on 18 March 2001, when control of the Council of Paris was won by a left-wing alliance for the first time since 1977 (election with universal suffrage). His predecessors were Jean Tiberi (1995–2001) and Jacques Chirac (1977–1995), who resigned after 18 years as mayor when he was elected President of