SAINT-MARTIN:--- The public has until Wednesday, October 21, at noon to vote for its preferred design in the My Saint-Martin Flag competition, as the territory moves toward selecting a flag for official adoption.

The consultative vote opened on October 14, with 10 finalist designs available at www.mysaintmartinflag.com. Participation is open to everyone, with no age limit, according to the Collectivité de Saint-Martin.

The competition, launched in August, attracted 42 submissions before entries closed on September 30. After the Cultural Affairs Department reviewed eligibility, 36 designs qualified for consideration by the jury.

The committee assigned each eligible entry an anonymous identification number before submitting it for assessment. The finalists are also displayed under those numbers during the public voting phase.

The jury met on October 10 to select the 10 finalists. Its membership brought together representatives of the Collectivité, cultural identity, neighborhood councils, youth, business, sports and graphic design.

The jury assessed entries against five criteria set out in the competition brief: identity, originality, graphic quality, feasibility, and the accompanying statement explaining the designer’s intentions.

The Collectivité thanked those who submitted designs, shared competition information, and encouraged others to participate. It described the public vote as an opportunity for the population to express its preference and contribute to a historic moment for Saint-Martin.

Public Vote Forms Part of Final Selection

The public ballot is one stage in the selection process. Once voting closes, the three finalists with the highest combined scores from the jury’s assessment and the public vote will be invited to a verification discussion with the jury.

An administrative phase will follow to protect the winning flag design and complete the necessary documentation.

The Territorial Council will then vote on the flag's official adoption. The project timetable lists December 7, 2026, as the date for the flag’s official installation.

Members of the public wishing to participate should review the 10 proposals and cast their vote before noon, Saint-Martin time, on October 21.

MARIGOT:---  Saint-Martin’s Executive Council has approved the temporary relocation of the Civil Registry following reports of mold and employees’ withdrawal from work over workplace conditions, while also approving a fiber-optic communications contract with a ceiling of €2 million over four years.

The decisions were among 15 deliberations examined during the Council’s October 8 meeting, according to a press release issued by the Collectivité on October 12. Other matters included financing for the €24.26 million La Savane development, withdrawal of a European grant for a training project and several planning applications.

Civil Registry to Move for Six to Eight Months

The Civil Registry, currently housed at the Hôtel de la Collectivité, is expected to move temporarily into the Events Department’s large meeting room while its existing premises undergo rehabilitation.

The Collectivité said employees reported traces of mold and exercised their right to withdraw from the workplace beginning September 22. Maintenance, cleaning, and treatment operations have since begun.

The temporary premises would provide four public service counters and four administrative workstations. Records needed for daily operations would be stored in a secure area accessible only to authorized employees.

The relocation is expected to last six to eight months, depending on the progress of rehabilitation work and necessary authorizations.

The Council earmarked civil registers covering 1940 through 1960 for transfer to the Territorial Archives at Bellevue, with that move planned for mid-October.

However, the Council made clear that the physical transfer of registers and documents subject to prosecutorial supervision requires prior written authorization from the public prosecutor at the Basse-Terre judicial court. The authorization request must include the storage locations, inventories, and transfer timetable.

The President of the Territorial Council has been tasked with organizing the temporary installation, maintaining public services and ensuring the security of the documents.

Fibre Contract Capped at €500,000 Annually

The Executive Council also approved the award of a framework contract covering 23 lots for fibre-optic links connecting administrative, technical and sensitive sites across Saint-Martin.

The agreement has no minimum purchase commitment and carries a maximum value of €500,000 excluding tax annually across all lots, or €2 million excluding tax over four years.

The network is intended to connect facilities including the Hôtel de la Collectivité, operational departments, Territorial Police stations and video-surveillance equipment.

According to the Collectivité, existing leased connections rely heavily on copper or radio infrastructure and no longer meet the administration’s requirements for speed, availability, and security.

The release describes two selected operators: one based in Baie-Mahault, Guadeloupe, and another headquartered in Marigot. It does not identify the companies by name.

Contractors must also comply with a social inclusion clause requiring 40 hours of employment integration activity for every €50,000 excluding tax. Failure to meet that obligation may trigger contractual penalties or sanctions.

Additional €1.68 Million in European Support Sought for La Savane

The Council approved a revised financing plan for the La Savane–RN7 development and will seek an additional €1,678,257 in support from the European Regional Development Fund.

The overall project is budgeted at €24,258,916.93 and covers approximately six hectares in upper La Savane. It involves preparing land and installing infrastructure to accommodate public facilities, housing and commercial activity.

Works include roads, public spaces, water-related networks, electricity, telecommunications, lighting and landscaping.

The first phase, launched in December 2025, is valued at approximately €7.4 million. The project’s infrastructure is scheduled for delivery in the final quarter of 2027.

The additional European funding would support connections and access serving the planned 900-student collège at La Savane. If secured, it would bring total European assistance to €2,678,257, alongside an unchanged €6.75 million contribution from the French State.

The Collectivité’s share would then stand at approximately €14.83 million. Combined State and European support would cover about 39 percent of the overall project cost, up from 32 percent previously.

€292,500 Mangrove Grant Withdrawn

The Council rescinded an earlier decision allocating €292,500 in European funding to SAS MANGROVE for an inclusive apprenticeship training center using tailored digital courses in hospitality and catering.

The decision follows the company’s submission of a letter withdrawing its application and renouncing the assistance.

The release places the decision within a broader review of European-funded projects following a European Commission audit of the programme’s management and control system in December 2025.

Provisional audit recommendations communicated on March 13, 2026, called for renewed examination of projects programmed by December 31, 2025. The review includes financial checks, scrutiny of applicable State-aid rules, and, where relevant, verification of procurement procedures.

The release does not state that fraud was established in the Mangrove project.

Planning Decisions Include Grand-Case Parking Approval

The Council declined to exercise its urban pre-emption rights over four proposed property transactions.

It also examined seven planning files, including the cancellation of an authorization for an industrial and commercial building at Bellevue and the cancellation of a request concerning an amended permit for two additional studios.

The committee issued favorable decisions for technical facilities incorporating photovoltaic canopies, an extension of a permit to rehabilitate an Irma-damaged shop on Rue de Hollande, a building conversion and extension in Grand-Case, and works to an existing property in Terres Basses.

A Grand-Case proposal for a parking area with fewer than 25 spaces, a security post, and a management office received tacit approval after the one-month processing deadline expired on October 1.