Évry


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Évry is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 25.0 km. (15.5 miles) from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Évry Ville Nouvelle, created in the 1960s, of which it is the central and most populated commune.

Significant nearby towns include Courcouronnes, Corbeil-Essonnes, Ris-Orangis, Brétigny-sur-Orge, and Draveil.

[edit] History

In 1965 Évry became part of the French new town initiative and took its current name. Before it was known as Évry-Petit-Bourg and had a population of only a few thousand.

When Évry was built Orly was the N°1 international airport of France and many international companies such as Digital, Hewlett Packard, and Alsthom established their head offices in Évry. However, with the expansion of Charles de Gaulle Roissy airport, all the larger companies have moved out causing the downfall of the many smaller service companies which catered to the lunchtime needs of the thousands of staff which were either displaced or made redundant.

Amongst the few international companies remaining are the hotel and catering firm of Accor, and the supermarket chain of Carrefour. Although both have a postal Cedex address in Évry, geographically they are in Courcouronnes.

The town has tried to counteract this exodus by increasing the capacity of the commercial center, the Agora to 286 shops, mostly selling the same wares (53 ready made women's wear, 19 shoe shops, 18 mens wear, 14 childrens wear, 14 jewellers, 12 mobile phone shops, 9 opticians, and 30 restaurants and snack bars). The car parks were destined to be "pay by the hour" but in view of the lack of trade, the idea has been shelved notwithstanding the expense of installing the barriers and pay points. Another measure taken by the local authorities has been to declare certain quarters a "zone franche" which means that businesses starting up in these areas are exempt from corporation tax along with many other social benefits and aids which makes Évry an attractive town for future entrepreneurs.

The Cathedral of the Resurrection, dedicated to Saint Corbinien is the only cathedral to have been built in Europe during the 20th Century. Pope John-Paul II made a visit on August 22, 1997, and although car parks were requisitioned as far away as Corbeil-Essonnes, apart from invited guests, less than 500 people turned out for the event, which means that Évry maybe holds the world record for the smallest crowd at a papal appearance.

In 2003, the socialist mayor, Manuel Valls, (born 13 August 1962, in Barcelona, Catalonia) and who is also the constituency deputé (Member of Parliament) and a qualified avocat (barrister), finally embarked upon a massive safeguard plan designed to entirely renovate the more defavourised areas which includes much demolition of the obsolete 1960s buildings (especially in the "Pyramides" quarter, once the French equivalent of the Gorbals), and the upgrading of the more recent residential structures and schools. 2006 will see the final renovation of the Collège des Pyramides at the cost of 11.43M€ (the price of a new school) and will receive 571 pupils. In 2007, enlargement and renovation will begin on the Lycée des Loges. The work will last 3 years without interruption of lessons and the budget is set at 40M€.

On January 31, 2006, in the Sénat during the 14th ceremony of the "Prix du Trombinoscope 2005" (press awards), Manuel Valls was elected "Local Representative of the Year."

[edit] Transport

Évry is served by three stations on Paris RER line D: Évry, Évry – Courcouronnes, and Le Bras-de-Fer.

[edit] External links

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