Toulouse. Houseboats: the end of small arrangements along the water
Faced with the number of boats waiting for a berth on the Toulouse river area, the Voies Navigables de France are sounding the alarm.
“For years, everything was simpler on the river domain, notes Jean-Yves Delmas, resident on the water. For my part, I sold two barges moored at the Pont des Demoiselles: Fleurette sold for €130,000 to a buyer in Avignon. And another at 40,000 € remained on site at the request of the buyer. For this last sale, we negotiated with Voies Navigables de France and everything was settled”.
“There are simply not enough places on the canal”
An impossible negotiation today without exposing oneself to repressive measures. “We sent a preventive letter reminding that an owner cannot sell his barge with the location, assures David Baichaire, public domain management manager at Voies Navigables de France. This European directive should facilitate the installation of barges on the waiting list, ie 90 in Haute-Garonne. The privatization of the public domain is not admissible. Although of course a sale with a location increases the price. » Yves Descloux knows this situation well since since 2016 he has been traveling with his barge Monique on the Canal du Midi… while waiting to have a place to moor: « Without a site, I settle where I can. And obviously I am sanctioned by VNF for illegal occupation. The latest fine was €8,500. There just aren’t enough places on the canal. Such mail only blocks sales and scares away new buyers! »
According to Vincent Melgoso, from Cabinet Fluvial Conseil, “this measure would be applicable if the waiting list was transparent, which is not the case in Haute-Garonne with a list that is neither public nor detailed”.
A measure on the other hand, approved by Toulouse Au Fil de l’O, “it is time for this directive to be public and applied. The Canal du Midi has a total lack of transparency. »