Sisteron: the story of urban regeneration
A comprehensive housing improvement policy
October 2021
Agence nationale de la cohésion des territoires (ANCT)
Since 2003, the municipality of Sisteron has been committed to redeveloping its old town centre. Initial studies painted a worrying picture of the situation. The programmes continued until 2017, when the OPAH-RU (Programme for Housing Improvement and Urban Regeneration) began. This scheme was active in the area for six years. Its role has been to provide financial assistance and technical support to private individuals for their energy renovation, adaptation, façade and roofing work, as well as for the organisation of condominiums.
To download : opah_ru_2017_2022_un_bilan_satisfaisant_ville_de_sisteron_06_29_2023_16_54_21.pdf (50 KiB)
The project
Sisteron is a small town in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department, and the seat of the Sisteronais-Buëch Community of Communes. It currently has a population of 7,326.
As part of its policy to enhance the attractiveness of the town centre, Sisteron has long been involved in housing improvement initiatives, particularly in the fight against substandard housing. The old town centre is dense, criss-crossed by narrow, steep streets that bear witness to the town’s medieval past, when in the 14th century it was competing with Marseille as the economic capital of Provence. The centre became increasingly impoverished during the 1990s and 2000s, leading to high vacancy rates and a predominance of tenants and low-income households.
In the 2000s, following an urban regeneration study, the town launched a policy focusing on six priority areas:
1. Combating substandard housing
2. Upgrading public spaces and enhancing the city’s heritage
3. Revitalising shops and promoting tourism
4. Developing mobility and inter-neighbourhood connections.
5. Systematically prioritise the town centre as a location for local public services.
6. Preserve the balance between the town centre and the suburbs.
Sisteron has mobilised a number of tools over the long term to take action and implement these priorities.
In 2008, an urban and social project management unit (MOUS) was set up, followed in 2010 by a multi-site RHI operation. Twenty-five social housing units were created, and shops and public spaces were renovated, leading in particular to the creation of a museum. An OPAH-RU was then set up following pre-operational studies carried out in 2015.
The OPAH-RU is a tool that supports public intervention in run-down areas by providing incentives for private owners to renovate. The project in Sisteron has four main focuses:
1. Re-qualification of public spaces and enhancement of heritage (encouraging links between neighbourhoods, recomposing the urban fabric, highlighting major heritage areas), with almost €2 million invested by the municipality.
2. Recovering the most run-down buildings through action on run-down blocks and substandard housing: definition of blocks (THIRORI), continuation of RHI operations, support for owners in projects to renovate very run-down housing.
3. Encourage residents to move to and stay in the town centre: create aid for adaptation projects (bathroom conversions, improved staircase access, aid for electrical compliance, energy-related work).
4. Support, awareness-raising and information for owners and users of condominiums.
In concrete terms, almost 1,250 million worth of work has been carried out in the city centre since 2017, with financial assistance from Anah amounting to over 42%. The work was carried out by a local company, generating economic spin-offs for the area.
Now, in 2021, Sisteron is continuing its proactive policy and undertaking a RHI-THIRORI operation, with the aim of creating 13 student accommodation units and a shop.
Objectives
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Reduce substandard housing by treating individual blocks in town centres.
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Combat the impoverishment of the town centre
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Protect the built heritage
Specific features
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Conventional incentives supplemented by coercive measures
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In the case of the OPAH-RU, the town holds fortnightly steering meetings with the design office to optimise the governance of the tools.
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Particularly close links between government departments and local authority departments
Assessment of the operation (2022): a total of €2.1 million has been committed, with an average subsidy rate of 42%, representing aid of around €880,000. In some cases, the pension funds and Action Logement have been able to supplement the funding provided by the OPAH-RU partners. 90% of the work was carried out by local companies, which has created a dynamic for the local economy. In six years, despite the health crisis, 118 projects have been supported, and 44 co-ownerships have been reorganised. The most important work carried out has been on façades and roofs, followed by energy renovation and adaptation. Given the positive results of the scheme, it is being renewed for 2023. Refurbishment work is continuing, with three buildings having undergone renovation work, enabling the delivery of 12 student accommodation units in June 2023 on rue Mercerie. The French government has just approved a subsidy application to launch an RHI operation on a run-down building in the rue Droite.