Structure
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Goya belongs to the social landlord Toulouse Habitat Métropole, which has been responsible for relocating the residents, all of whom were tenants, for the past two years. The Bellefontaine Urban Renewal Project is bringing changes to the neighborhood, leading to demolitions funded by the ANRU. This means that Toulouse Habitat Métropole vacates the buildings before they are demolished.
From our visit, we tried to understand the functioning of Bellefontaine and Goya, managed by Toulouse Habitat Métropole, which face serious structural and social problems. Residents experience violations of their fundamental rights, with illegal practices from landlords that often endanger their lives.
Photo taken during our visit to Bellefontaine, in the GOYA building. You can see doors sealed by Toulouse Habitat Métropole. The burn marks around the door frame were caused by welding.
The lack of maintenance is evident in degraded infrastructures, such as broken elevators, heating outages, and poorly secured areas, particularly for women who do not feel safe. Many women wish to leave and are rarely present in public spaces.
The demolition of these homes, politically justified by their alleged inefficiency, conceals a reality where many apartments are still in good condition and financially accessible, making it difficult to relocate residents. Some are pleased to leave these places and see demolition as a way out, but for others, it means leaving behind a sense of community and a lifetime investment in their apartment, and this under pressure. The relocation proposals they receive are often smaller in size and higher in rent.
Drug trafficking, vandalism, and police repression generate a strong sense of insecurity. Predominantly from immigrant backgrounds and low-income households, residents face employment barriers and a lack of information which amplifies their cultural and social exclusion. This context creates a system of marginalization and precarity that perpetuates inequalities within these social housing units.
This diagnosis sadly shows that the very nature of these buildings and their urban composition are not the root causes of the dysfunctions in these neighborhoods, but rather a racist state system in which residents endure racial segregation and gender discrimination.
Diagram illustrating a social diagnosis of the dynamics within the Bellefontaine neighborhood and life in the Goya-Titien building
Diagram illustrating the housing situation in Toulouse: a true housing crisis is affecting the city.