Eugénia and José Casal will have to demolish their house in Butry-sur-Oise, in the Val-d'Oise. Built in a flood zone, it sits 37 centimeters too low relative to the flood risk.
The couple discovered this error too late. Construction is not finished. It can no longer be completed under the current conditions, and the property cannot be sold either.
For the couple, the stakes are twofold: getting out of an unusable property and obtaining compensation for a level error that makes the construction incompatible with the flood risk. For the municipality, the compensation being sought would weigh heavily on local finances.
What comes next is no longer playing out on the construction site. The answer lies in the hands of the lawyers and insurers, around a house that was never completed and must already be demolished.
Unable to complete or transfer the home, demolition is unavoidable. The unfinished house is already slated for demolition.
Eugénia and José Casal are seeking 950,000 euros in compensation from the municipality of Butry-sur-Oise.
Claude Noël, an independent mayor, estimates that this sum represents half of the municipal budget. According to his statements reported by France Info, the municipality would then find itself in a very complicated situation."The municipality is going to find itself in a very complicated situation,"the mayor says.