Residents of Sarcelles, one of the French postwar Grands Ensembles projects, are losing vital cultural amenities to more affluent neighbours

A poster for a film released in 2001 hangs in the white frame over the entrance to the closed cinema. Overlooking Place de France, in the middle of the Grand Ensemble estate at Sarcelles (one of the first, biggest and most notorious of France’s postwar housing projects – the Grands Ensembles that dot the outer suburbs of France’s big cities), the abandoned cinema sets the tone for its surroundings. The black and white paving is coming unstuck and the cafes, pizza joints and Western Union outlets all look dismally tacky. The shopping centre is in slow decline. Just down the road is the Forum des Cholettes, an arts centre that has been closed due to asbestos contamination. Metal fencing surrounds this crumbling bunker. Once an iconic hip-hop venue, it closed in 1999. Now scheduled for demolition, it will be replaced by new housing.

Many locals are alarmed by the gradual collapse of amenities in Sarcelles. Some are old enough to have watched the Grand Ensemble being built; others grew up there.

Led by Nabil Koskossi, who works for a local NGO, a petition has been put on change.org. It hopes to gain a reprieve for the Forum, which has come to symbolise their struggle. It has a Facebook page, calling for renovation not demolition. Various local figures – such as Eric Aït Si-Ahmed, alias DJ Desh – have pledged their support. “They’re destroying a symbol of social encounter, which used to be open to everyone. The leader of the council would rather fund specific projects for each community,” says Si-Ahmed, who grew up in a nearby tower block.