The city will still sparkle while cutting energy use by 44 percent throughout the holiday season as retail booms.
Jamet said LVMH’s energy sobriety plan had inspired the Champs-Élysées Committee, as well as business organizations of the Vendôme and Haussmann shopping areas. Security questions had been the biggest concern, he added, but they were working on solutions.
Olivia Polski, assistant mayor for business, art and fashion, framed the efforts as part of the citywide transformation, despite hiccups such as traffic snarls during fashion week. “Perhaps it is difficult when you see the transformation taking place, but we are going to prepare for the years to come, change mobility, energy efficiency, the fight against pollution and transform urban spaces to be more green.
“I don’t know what comes first, the chicken or the egg,” joked Jamet of the building boom taking place on the avenue. “But I see it as relatively independent that businesses are taking the decision to come back on the Champs-Élysées after years of disarray. It’s not the consequence of the Olympic Games, but the decision of companies themselves.”