Laying the first stone for the archive and heritage center. The cantonal and communal authorities met on rue du Commerce 100 on Wednesday in La Chaux-de-Fonds. The building will host the state archives, but also those of the city and the heritage sectors of the Library of the Metropolis Horlogère. It is actually the renovation and development of the former premises of the Coop, right next to the future administrative pole of “docks”.
The first discussions around the project are over ten years old. In October 2024, the Neuchâtel deputies voted a credit of 40 million francs, for its part, the General Council of La Chaux-de-Fonds did the same with two similar credits of 13 million francs. For the State Councilor Alain Ribaux, in charge of the economy, security and culture, it is a special day: “It is a few days before the end of my mandate as a state councilor, and it was a project that began a few days after I arrived at the Council of State twelve years ago. »»
In addition to the state archives and those of the city, the building will also host the private archives, the audiovisual department and the prints of the Neuchâtel mountains. A way of “highlighting the richness of our heritage funds” underlines Théo Bregnard, municipal councilor in charge of culture in Chaux-de-Fonds.
The Archives and Heritage Center will be finalized by 2027. /COMM-ECR
