Description

Paris intra-muros covers an area of 105 km2 and had a population of 2,133,111 on 1 January 2021. Its conurbation covers an area of 2,846 km2 and had a population of 10,856,407 on 1 January 2020, making it the most densely populated conurbation in France and Western Europe. As well as being home to many multinational headquarters, the city is also home to a number of European and international institutions. It is also one of the world's leading financial centres.

The Local Urban Plan (PLU) is a town planning document which, at the level of a group of municipalities or a municipality, reflects an overall development and town planning project and sets the rules for development and land use accordingly.

In order to ensure that the rules of the future bioclimatic Local Urban Plan (PLU) meet the requirements of the ecological transition and its immense challenges, for a greener and more united capital, the revision of this document was launched in December 2020. 

Five major objectives have guided this review process:

• Inclusivity and solidarity: welcoming everyone, encouraging diversity, enabling everyone to find a home and have access to public services and culture.
• Preserving heritage and landscapes: preserving the city's heritage and transforming existing buildings to preserve the city's identity. Promoting biodiversity and greening open spaces.
• Sustainability, resilience and decarbonisation: encouraging low-carbon development and limiting waste production. Reduce soil impermeability.
• Attractiveness and productivity: promoting sustainable innovation, encouraging commercial and craft diversity, urban agriculture and transport.
• The city as a player in the metropolis: cooperating with other parts of the metropolis on common issues of solidarity, housing, health, transport and the environment.

The consultation process involved all Parisians and, more broadly, all residents of Ile-de-France and the Paris region, regardless of their status (individuals or groups), who were interested in the future of Paris. The aim was to encourage citizens to put forward proposals on the orientations of the next PLU and to give their opinion on the proposals for key actions.

Everyone was able to participate through the idee.paris.fr participation platform, public meetings and themed workshops, for example. Neighbourhood councils were also set up, offering 26 training workshops and collecting contributions. The Parisian Youth Council also contributed to the inclusion of young people in the process. Finally, local and regional authorities also played a major role in the metropolitan workshops.

Remarkably, a Citizens' Conference prior to the revision of the City of Paris' PLU was also organised in September 2020, bringing together 100 Parisians and metropolitan residents to help define the objectives of the revision. The 30 proposals were debated at the Paris Council and 2,500 people wrote over 1,000 contributions and voted for or against them via the online citizen consultation.

A total of 288 meetings were organised throughout Paris and beyond, offering different formats for discussion aimed at all kinds of audiences: residents, associations, urban policy districts, children, neighbourhood councils, professionals, young people, etc.

At the beginning of 2024, the opinions of Parisians will once again be sought as part of the public enquiry on the complete draft PLU before its final approval.

This consultation process, which is unusual for a regulatory subject, has thus been able to stand out from the mechanisms generally used to support PLU revisions.

Sources of information (in French):

The Local Urban Plan

• Local Urban Plan | collectivites-locales.gouv.fr.

Public consultation on the new Local Urban Plan

• https://www.paris.fr/pages/plan-local-d-urbanisme-a-quoi-ressemblera-paris-en-2030-12198
• https://www.paris.fr/pages/concertation-citoyenne-les-parisiens-ont-la-parole-15670

City of Paris application for the OIDP 2023 Award 

• https://www.oidp.net/docs/repo/doc1546.pdf