Commentary

Parisians Rally In Defense of Vintage Newsstands

The French have long enjoyed a reputation for defending things that would never occur to Anglophones as needing defense, like the French language. To the long list of quixotic causes embraced by the French, we can now add another – newsstands.

 

Yes, the citizens of Paris are organizing to protect the iconic lozenge-shaped newspaper kiosks dotting the city, whose domed roofs provide a perfect backdrop for artsy black-and-white photos of couples kissing or what have you. The city’s government is proposing to replace them with updated designs, which some observers have compared, not at all favorably, to a “sardine can.”

When the government decides whether to proceed with the plan this week, it will have to include a petition signed by tens of thousands of Parisians protesting the plan to do away with the 360 distinctive newsstands. They were built four decades ago, but based on designs dating back to the second half of the 19th century – an era associated with some of the most architecturally characteristic parts of Paris, including the Eiffel Tower.

Mediakiosk, a division of global outdoor signage giant JCDecaux, has signed a 15-year management contract which includes the task of overhauling the kiosks, at an estimated cost of $57.5 million.

Critics of the plan to replace the kiosks invoked business arguments, too, warning that tampering with the city’s established image, even in seemingly small ways, might affect the city’s tourism industry: “We want Parisian newspaper kiosks to keep all the charm of ‘romantic Paris’ so dear to tourists… while improving the comfort of people working in them.”

Another recent move to spruce up the city, the removal last year of tons of “love locks” left by tourists on the famous Pont des Arts bridge, also inspired a wave of criticism on apparently pragmatic business grounds — even though the practice only dated back to 2008.

But now the situation is getting serious.

In a particularly pointed attack, one comment warned that swapping out the old kiosks for the sleek, sardine-like new ones could leave Paris looking like – God help us all – London.

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