Frédéric Mitterrand, Minister of Culture and Communication, has decided to select the site of Cergy-Pontoise to host the future Centre national de conservation, de restauration et de recherches patrimoniales in Île-de-France.
The need to secure the collections of the great Parisian museums on the banks of the Seine is the origin of this establishment unique in Europe. The Centre must offer the opportunity to bring together in one place exceptional works and artistic, scientific and technical expertise capable of enhancing them.
After a first call for projects launched in July 2008 to all local authorities and private and public developers in Île-de-France, sixteen sites were identified.
The selection criteria against which the Cergy-Pontoise site was selected were accessibility, the ease of construction of the necessary spaces and the involvement, in a partnership framework, of the communities concerned, in order to be able to grant this equipment, beyond its cultural vocation, a structuring role in educational and social matters.
In addition, the proximity of the scientific department of the University of Cergy-Pontoise will allow the future Centre to benefit from the dynamism of the Research and Higher Education Pole and to multiply the links with the research and training institutions established there, to strengthen its level of excellence and contribute to the development of heritage research.
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In order to place the establishment at the service of all the public, close collaboration will very quickly be initiated with the General Council, with the city of Cergy-Pontoise and its agglomeration community, as well as with the various economic and social partners concerned.
After Pierrefitte-sur-Seine to host the National Archives, the choice of a commune of Île de France with a young population, resolutely committed to a dynamic of urban creation, demonstrates once again the ambition of the Ministry of Culture and Communication in terms of social culture.