Veterans Affairs Minister Lawrence McAlay has promised to do “everything possible” to resolve the dispute over the proposed housing construction in Juneau Beach in France, the landing site on Day D that killed hundreds of Canadian soldiers.
The site is currently home to the Juno Beach Center, a private Canadian museum that has been open for nearly 20 years.
For two years, the museum has been fighting a lengthy court battle with French developer Foncim, which plans to build two buildings near the beach for a total of 66 apartments.
“We will do everything we can to find a proper solution to this dispute,” McAlay told reporters outside the museum on Wednesday.
Veterans Affairs Minister Lawrence McAlee watches Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shake hands with World War II veteran Al Roy as he visits Juneau Beach after Canada’s national commemoration of D’s 75th anniversary in Juneau Beach, Courseulles-Sur Mer, France, on June 6, 2019 (Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press)
Save Juno Beach, a group of Canadians organized to halt development, says building apartments on the site where Canadian troops took part in a key Normandy landing will disgrace the victims of those soldiers who stormed the beach on June 6, 1944. .
However, a French court ruling in early January granted Foncim the right to begin construction later this year. A spokesman for the developer told French media that construction could begin in September and last up to two years.
McAlay did not elaborate on what resolution he would like to see, but noted that he met with the mayor of Courseulles-sur-Mer – where Juno Beach is located – and will meet with the French minister, a delegate for remembrance and veterans to emphasize the importance of commemorating the loss of Canadians who died at Juneau.
“I will certainly not lead what the center is doing, what the city is doing here or what the French government is doing,” he said.
“My job is to point out how important it is to pay respect and remembrance and, of course, to point out how important Juneau Beach is to Canada because a lot of our blood has been shed here.
Legal dispute over access to the road
Unlike the Save Juno Beach group, the museum says it is not strongly opposed to the possibility of building near the landing site.
The legal dispute between the developer and Juno Beach Center has largely focused on the use of a road – called la Voie des Français Libres – built and operated by the museum.
Fonchim plans to use the road during construction. The museum tried to block the developer’s access on the grounds that the construction would disrupt access to the site.
“We are very concerned about the impact this will have on the Juno Beach Center,” the museum said in a previous statement to the CBC.
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