Epress.am News from Armenia
According to the mayor’s decision, the outdoor section of Le Cafe de Paris has to be taken down, city employees told the management of the cafe on Abovyan St. in Yerevan.
Le Cafe de Paris owner Ashkhen (Valerie) Gordzounian told Epress.am that she hasn’t yet looked at the paperwork, but she can’t understand how the cafe’s outdoor section has operated for 16 years without obstruction to anyone and now it has to be demolished.
“We decided to take it down ourselves because they said if you don’t take it down, we will. I don’t know, in Armenia it’s a bit hard to say whether it’s legal or not. Have they decided that there will no longer be cafes on Abovyan St.? If there is such a law, I agree with the law, but if the walls of Le Cafe de Paris have been here for 16 years, why are they an obstruction now? Our customers want to sign something [i.e. a petition], but we’ll wait till Monday, see what will happen. On Monday, I’ll go and speak to Mr. Mayor to find out what has to be done to restore [the outdoor cafe]. Let’s see the decision because Le Cafe de Paris has been recognized particularly for its outdoor cafe, not its indoor one,” she said.
Note, over the years, it’s been the cafe’s owner who has maintained the grounds, preserving the green space surrounding the cafe, for which it has been recognized as one of the most environmentally friendly cafes in the city.
While the demolition was going on outside, the Epress.am correspondent spoke with cafe patrons who expressed their disagreement with the decision. A teacher by the name of Astghik said the atmosphere in the cafe is very warm and the service, good, and good clientele comes here.
“Then, it seems to me that it doesn’t bother the appearance of the city. It was done with taste. We’re from Hrazdan; whenever we come to Yerevan we have coffee here. But why are they demolishing it? Everyone’s rushing to mimic Europe, now all of Europe has such cafes — I’m opposed to their demolishing it,” said Astghik.
Long-time Yerevan resident Aram Harutyunyan also weighed in on the matter of demolishing the outdoor section of the cafe.
“It’s similar to if in the 50s they removed the baths from Yerevan; that is, that place where people gather, where they can have contact with each other, exchange thoughts. In the regions we’re known for being a city rich with cafes and foreign nationals come and compare us with other capitals in the South Caucasus, saying you’re more like a European city — they want to get rid of this, I’m against it,” he said, adding that there are more important issues in the city that need to be addressed.