Toulouse: the town hall prefers a restaurateur to operate Wilson’s six kiosks
The operation of the six kiosks of the Roosevelt alleys, at the exit of the Jean-Jaurès metro station, will be assigned to a restaurant owner who is installing various points of sale and a large terrace. The objective of the town hall, which awarded the concession on Friday, is to make the site more attractive.
The six art deco kiosks of the Roosevelet alleys, at the exit of the Jean-Jaurès metro station, owned by the town hall, will be managed by a single trader, the SARL Vinimer which will house, among other things, the bar-restaurant Le Cabanon, place Victor-Hugo, and the MIN tavern. The city council voted this Friday, December 16, a service concession awarded to this Toulouse restaurateur following a procedure induced in May and which initially resulted in five applications.
During the previous mandate, Jean-Jacques Bolzan, then assistant to the trade, had moved two of the kiosks deposited there since the Thirties. Since then, the town hall has always been looking for a way to restore the attractiveness of this site which, with the Jean-Jaurès metro, is the main gateway to Toulouse.
“This esplanade is a wart”, a summary of Olivier Arsac now in charge of trade. For the elected official, these kiosks, because they are too small, do not allow traders to make a living from them. “So they often have a second job and the kiosks remain closed for part of the day. The esplanade is then squatted by delivery men and dealers. Hence the idea of a single manager who will also have the function of occupying the land thanks to its terraces.
The restorer has chosen, in the eyes of the majority, presented the best file. The six kiosks will offer a different offer: street-food, world cuisine, pastry, sale of flowers… 300 m2 of terrace are planned, supervised by two security guards, always with a passage for pedestrians, for a launch on April 1, 2023.
Isabelle Hardy, former deputy mayor in charge of trade (ecological group), is not convinced by the proposed solution which, for her, will not work given the influx. Odile Maurin (Alternative municipaliste) then Vincent Gibert (PS) wondered about the choice of concessionaire. The entire opposition voted against.