France's Unfulfilled Commitments at the Olympics
The 2024 Paris Olympics, held in Saint-Denis last summer, were hailed as an opportunity to address the long-standing housing crisis in one of France's poorest neighbourhoods. However, a year later, local residents are protesting outside the government offices, demanding housing rights, as the social housing impact of the Games has been marked by increased demand, insufficient provision, and criticism from local groups.
Initially, Paris pledged that a third of the new homes built for the Games would be affordable, but only around 11% were delivered while thousands of social housing units were demolished. The target for allocating new apartments in the Olympic village to social housing tenants was 40%, but it has fallen to around 20%.
The social housing crisis in Saint-Denis and the department of Seine-Saint-Denis remains severe. Despite significant investments connected to the Olympics, by the end of 2024, the department saw a 20% increase in households on the social housing waiting list compared to 2019, with 142,971 households waiting, including 13,562 in urgent need. Local officials have acknowledged the limited resources to meet this crisis despite Olympic-related investments.
Local associations have criticised the Olympics' social impact harshly, citing a sharp rise in street clearances, evictions from squats, and forced relocations in lead-up to the Games, particularly affecting vulnerable residents in Seine-Saint-Denis. Marie Huiban, an activist with the campaign group Right to Housing, which organizes against evictions, claimed the Olympics made the housing situation worse in Saint-Denis.
However, not all developments have been negative. The athlete and media villages created roughly 4,000 new homes, and eight swimming pools built or renovated in Seine-Saint-Denis aimed to improve local sports infrastructure, addressing some underprivileged needs. Public spending heavily focused on Seine-Saint-Denis, with money allocated to sports and infrastructure upgrades.
Despite the new homes, the new apartments built for the Games struggle to sell, with prices averaging €6,900 per square meter, well beyond the means of most local residents. City officials have argued they lack the resources to address the scale of the housing crisis in Saint-Denis, but critics argue this approach risks accelerating gentrification while doing little to bring down social housing waiting lists.
The municipality of Saint-Denis appears to be embracing a strategy of attracting middle-class Parisians to the periphery to boost tax revenues and fuel local economic growth. This strategy, however, has raised concerns about social cleansing. City officials have denied these accusations, pointing to the creation of more than 200 places in temporary shelters and justifying clearances as a security measure.
In a minor victory, officials agreed to meet with protest organizers following a demonstration outside the local government offices. Huiban reported positive responses regarding the situations of several people facing immediate eviction during the meeting. The protest marked a significant moment in the ongoing struggle for housing rights in Saint-Denis.
As Paris faces questions over whether it delivered lasting change, the residents of Saint-Denis continue to demand affordable housing and an end to evictions and forced relocations. The social housing impact of the 2024 Paris Olympics in Saint-Denis has been significant but largely problematic for the local population, exacerbating the existing housing crisis rather than alleviating it.
[1]: Source: Le Monde, 2023 [3]: Source: France 24, 2023
- The social housing crisis in Saint-Denis has sparked political debates and protests, as residents argue the 2024 Paris Olympics exacerbated the problem rather than alleviating it, with education and self-development discussions centering around the need for a comprehensive solution to this persistent issue.
- As general news stories continue to cover the ongoing struggle for housing rights in Saint-Denis, policymakers are under pressure to address the issue, with criticisms of the Olympics' social impact merging with calls for reform, advocating for a more equitable approach to education-and-self-development in regards to housing.
