Didier Borotra, the mayor of Biarritz on the Basque Coast of France and a member of the French Senate, died on Wednesday at the age of 86 from a stroke.
He was mayor of the famous seaside resort in the Basque Country for a total of 23 years (from 1991 to 2014) and was a builder who shaped the Basque Coast during that time.
Borotra was struck by a massive stroke after giving a tribute to his childhood friend and renowned art collector Pierre Levai, who died in June in New York.
He was a strong centrist during his time as mayor.
Borotra was an industrialist and builder before he entered politics, and he brought that ability to his time as mayor.
He was a senator for Pyrénées-Atlantiques until 2011. He served as a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense and Armed Forces.
After becoming Mayor, he got major credit for taking the sleepy town and revitalizing it into a modern marvel.
His tenure saw new top-notch cultural and conference facilities including the Media Library, the Maison des Associations, the renovation of the municipal casino and the Bellevue, the Cité de l'Océan, and the Halle d'Iraty.
He also established a heritage protection zone in the city, which gave government help to property owners to preserve their buildings in that zone.
Borotra apparently didn't have a crystal clear reputation.
In 2017, he was sentenced on appeal to a fine of 30,000 euros for canceling thousands of parking tickets while he was a municipal official.
In 2019, he was prosecuted for "illegal taking of interests" for his part in a consultancy missions project entrusted to his daughter Sophie.
In that case, Borotra was acquitted by the Pau Court of Appeal.
These two court actions don't negate the influence Borotra had on his city and the legacy he will leave behind.
