The French Ministry of Culture and Communication could be moving in two years’ time as part of a radical restructure. The ministry website says that the governmental department is looking for “27,000 sq. m of space”; according to Connaissance des Arts magazine, the ministry is subsequently considering three long-term plans.
The first proposal involves relocating the ministry headquarters to the suburbs, with the minister, currently Fleur Pellerin, and her aides remaining at the main official offices in the Bons Enfants building on rue de Valois near the Louvre; another initiative would see around 300 ministry staff based at existing departmental branches in the Beaubourg (fourth arrondissement) and Richelieu (first arrondissement) districts transferred to the Bons Enfants base; the final idea is to bring together the entire ministry in one location, the National Archives building in the Marais district.
The latter project has been criticised by the CFDT union (Confédération française démocratique du travail), which says that its members must “act now” to block the plans. A spokesperson for the ministry says that it is considering various options.