The Paris city council on Tuesday approved the sale of the Forum des Halles, a huge commercial complex in the center of the city, to Unibail-Rodamco, a private consortium, and insurance group Axa.
Anne Hidalgo of the Socialist Party, the council’s deputy head of urban planning, described the sale as a “decisive step” in plans to renovate the facility.
The vote on the council was 82 in favor, 57 against, with six abstentions.
The mayor’s office is planning a renovation of the aging Forum des Halles, one of the world’s largest commercial centers, as a well as a suburban train station that serves it by 2016-2017.
The vote authorises the sale to the site’s current operator, Unibail-Rodamco, for 238 million euros (320 million dollars).
The total investment needed for the project has been estimated at 802 million euros.
Paris, Nov 16, 2010 (AFP)
