Val Tolosa

Val Tolosa, formerly known as Portes de Gascogne, was a proposed shopping and leisure centre project located in Plaisance-du-Touch, in the western suburbs of Toulouse, France. Initiated in 2005 through the creation of a zone d'aménagement concerté (ZAC) called Les Portes de Gascogne on the Menude plateau, the project was designed to occupy 44 hectares of agricultural land and to include 90,000 square metres of built surface, comprising a 61,000-square-metre hypermarket and 160 retail units. Plans also featured a restaurant area beside a planned 1.8-hectare lake, nine hectares of green spaces, and the planting of 2,000 trees. The architectural firm responsible was the Toulouse-based Taillandier Architectes & Associés, and the design was intended to meet BREEAM Very Good environmental certification criteria in the design phase. The project was promoted as a sustainable-development-oriented retail centre, but it faced sustained opposition from local collectives, environmental associations, and residents who argued that it would harm small businesses and employment in surrounding towns and worsen road traffic. The collective "Non aux Portes de Gascogne" was created in 2005, and numerous actions followed over the years, including a march from the Menude plateau to the Toulouse prefecture on 9 November 2013. Le Monde selected the project as one of 25 emblematic French cases of "frondes contre des projets 'inutiles'" (revolts against 'useless' projects). Legally, the project experienced a long series of permits and annulments. A public inquiry in 2008 produced a favourable opinion, and a building permit was granted in 2009. The promoter Unibail-Rodamco signed an employment partnership with Pôle emploi on 26 February 2013. On 28 November 2013, the Toulouse Administrative Court rejected opponents' appeals against the building permit, but this decision was appealed to the Bordeaux Administrative Court of Appeal. On 14 June 2016, the Bordeaux court annulled the 10 September 2009 building permit and the 8 June 2010 modified permit. In May 2017, the multiplex cinema authorisation was annulled, and on 13 July 2017 the Bordeaux court confirmed the annulment of the authorisation to destroy protected species and their habitat. In May 2022, the Toulouse Administrative Court of Appeal also rejected the building permit. In 2023, the Conseil d'État definitively cancelled the project. Since these annulments, construction never truly began, the land has been abandoned and has become a large wasteland with significant quantities of waste, and the old section of departmental road 24 has been abandoned with its accesses closed but not demolished.

Val Tolosa, originally called Portes de Gascogne, was a shopping and leisure centre project located in Plaisance-du-Touch, in the western suburbs of Toulouse, France. The project was initiated in 2005 with the creation of a zone d'aménagement concerté (ZAC) named Les Portes de Gascogne on the Menude plateau. It was planned on 44 hectares of agricultural land and envisaged 90,000 square metres of built surface, including a 61,000-square-metre hypermarket and 160 retail units. Additional features included a restaurant area beside a planned 1.8-hectare lake, nine hectares of green spaces, and the planting of 2,000 trees. The architectural firm was the Toulouse-based Taillandier Architectes & Associés, and the design was intended to meet BREEAM Very Good environmental certification criteria in the design phase. A public inquiry in 2008 gave rise to a favourable opinion from the investigating commissioner, and a building permit was granted in 2009. According to the promoter, construction was to start in the second half of 2013 and the centre was to open in 2016. The building permit was challenged before the Toulouse Administrative Court. On 24 October 2013, the public rapporteur issued an opinion rejecting all arguments of the opponents, notably insufficient impact studies on fauna and flora and uncertainty over road access. On 28 November 2013, the Toulouse Administrative Court rejected the appeals filed by project opponents against the building permit. This decision was appealed to the Bordeaux Administrative Court of Appeal. In the meantime, Pôle emploi and the promoter Unibail-Rodamco signed an employment partnership on 26 February 2013 to favour hiring of jobseekers in the Midi-Pyrénées region, particularly on the construction site. According to Olivier Bossard, the construction of Val Tolosa would generate 3,000 direct and indirect jobs, and 2,000 further hires were planned to animate the centre's commercial activity. In early 2016, an agreement on the construction of the Val Tolosa shopping centre was reached. However, on 14 June 2016, the Bordeaux Court of Appeal annulled the building permit of 10 September 2009 and the modified permit of 8 June 2010. After the annulment of the building permit on appeal in June 2016 and the annulment of the multiplex cinema authorisation in May 2017, the annulment of the authorisation to destroy protected species and their habitat was confirmed on appeal by the Bordeaux Administrative Court of Appeal on 13 July 2017 (a derogation for the destruction of natural species had been issued on 29 August 2013 by the prefect of Haute-Garonne). The court also confirmed that the economic and social interest of the project was not seriously demonstrated. In May 2022, the Toulouse Administrative Court of Appeal in turn rejected the building permit. In 2023, the Conseil d'État definitively cancelled the project. Since these annulments, construction never truly began, the land has been abandoned and forms a large wasteland where significant quantities of waste are dumped. The old section of departmental road 24 has been abandoned and its accesses closed, but it has not been demolished. Opposition to the project was significant. According to opponents, Val Tolosa would harm small businesses and employment in surrounding towns and worsen road traffic conditions. The collective "Non aux Portes de Gascogne" was created in 2005, and numerous actions were organised over the years. According to the group, the decision to grant the building permit showed a democratic deficit, as residents of the various communes on the plateau had not been consulted. On 9 November 2013, opponents demonstrated in a march from the Menude plateau to the Toulouse prefecture. The project was selected by Le Monde, along with 24 others, as one of the most emblematic French cases of "frondes contre des projets 'inutiles'" (revolts against 'useless' projects). In April 2016, the Toulouse Administrative Court annulled the prefectural decree authorising the destruction of about a hundred protected species, which blocked the Val Tolosa project. The associations France Nature Environnement and Nature Midi-Pyrénées, opponents for a decade, denounced a project that was "inutile et surdimensionné" (useless and oversized). On 10 August 2016, the project was granted a new building permit. After the annulment of the building permit...

• Project initiated with the creation of the ZAC Les Portes de Gascogne on the Menude plateau; collective 'Non aux Portes de Gascogne' created.

• Public inquiry gives rise to a favourable opinion from the investigating commissioner.

• Building permit granted (10 September 2009).

• Modified building permit granted.

• Pôle emploi and promoter Unibail-Rodamco sign employment partnership.

• Prefect of Haute-Garonne issues derogation for destruction of natural species.

• Public rapporteur rejects all arguments of opponents.

• Opponents march from the Menude plateau to the Toulouse prefecture.

• Toulouse Administrative Court rejects appeals against the building permit.

• Toulouse Administrative Court annuls the prefectural decree authorising destruction of about a hundred protected species.

• Collective 'Non à Val Tolosa' organises a rally in front of the departmental council to protest against the transfer of roads.

• Bordeaux Court of Appeal annuls the 2009 building permit and the 2010 modified permit.

• Project granted a new building permit.

• Multiplex cinema authorisation annulled.

• Bordeaux Administrative Court of Appeal confirms annulment of protected species destruction authorisation.

• Toulouse Administrative Court of Appeal rejects the building permit.

• Conseil d'État definitively cancels the project.

Planned as a sustainable-development-oriented shopping and leisure centre for the western Toulouse area, though it was never built.

• Shopping centre (planned)

  90,000 m² of built surface including a hypermarket and 160 retail units.

• Hypermarket (planned)

  61,000 m² hypermarket.

• Leisure and restaurant area (planned)

  Restaurant area beside a planned 1.8-hectare lake.

1. 1Val Tolosa - Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2Val Tolosa - Wikipédiafr.wikipedia.org