And this is about time to give you another update on the grand Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris and its reconstruction. As you might know , this is a symbol of Paris , sometimes more so than the Eiffel and the whole country is behind it. One of the magnificent gothic cathedrals of my belle France! Here are the latest news on its return , and it will better than ever.
It’s a metal cathedral now. From floor to ceiling, from the Choir to the nave, are tens of thousands of steel tubes. Everywhere, scaffolders are busy putting up this framework. In the future, it will clean up walls contaminated with lead. At the moment, the scaffolding is used to access the vaults. The extraordinary work is the pride of its designer.
The vaults are particularly weakened, their consolidation is therefore the priority of the site. Massive structural members, 7 to 10 meters long, arrive by air. About twenty of these wooden belts are already in place. The device is close to that of the builders of cathedrals. The actual reconstruction work will begin this summer 2021.
The National Heritage and Architecture Commission (CNPA) has ruled after studying several restoration proposals. The frame will be “close to the missing frame”
In the aftermath of the fire at Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral in April 2019, Emmanuel Macron announced the reconstruction of the millennial cathedral in the next 5 years, on the horizon of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Hope undermined by the forecasts of the first deputy mayor of Paris, Emmanuel Grégoire auditioned in the National Assembly on the subject of the restoration of the church, which foresees a delivery of the site in 2025. The site will not be finished, but the cathedral will have a partial reopening and in particular to the exercise of worship in 2024.
Controversy especially with the mayor of Paris, (as always) Above all, those responsible for the hearing at the National Assembly were particularly interested in the allocation of the 50 million euros, promised by the city of Paris in 2019 just after the tragedy. For now, parliamentarians note that none of the structures and foundations mobilized in the restoration of the church has touched the slightest centime/penny. Concretely, the deputy mayor Emmanuel Grégoire, confirms that this sum will be allocated to the renovation of the surroundings of Notre-Dame Cathedral of Paris, in particular the famous square (parvis). There is the catch no money but wait we promise afterward for outside decoration work! The surroundings must continue to promote a mix of uses, a place for strolling, recreational and cultural uses for Parisians and visitors, a place of contemplation for users of worship , and enhance views of the cathedral on all routes. approach, including from the Seine river.
Thus, the city of Paris project is broken down into four main areas of work: the historical, heritage and landscape enhancement, the diversification of uses, the creation of a reception, waiting and of discovery , and strengthening of the environmental qualities of the site. Regarding the schedule, the final specifications will be submitted in the summer of 2021 before starting the selection of the “winner” project one year later, in the summer of 2022, according to the program planned by the City/Town Hall. of Paris. The start of work will not be envisaged before the Olympic Games are held in Paris in the summer of 2024.
A protective, non-slip, very resistant and cleanable resin has also come to cover the surface of the square (parvis) in order to alleviate the problems related to lead pollution, which appeared after the fire. Finally, the Crypt decontamination work is completed. Measurements revealed very low post-cleaning lead levels, with 17 readings less than 100µg / m², the highest at 754µg / m². This site is therefore considered “clean”.
It’s the final line to found out who/what cause the fire; of course, a very political outcome. A little less than two years after the fire at Notre-Dame Cathedral of Paris, which had devastated it, the investigations entered their final phase. Scientists from the Paris police headquarters laboratory and investigators are preparing to enter, for the first time, the red zone, which is located in the heart of the historic and religious monument, France Télévisions learned from a police source. To date, the conclusions of the investigation by the judicial police show that only a succession of errors and negligence would be at the origin of the incident, specifies the same source.
For the moment, they remained on the same theses: the cigarette butt, the short-circuit , indicates the source close to the investigation, still considering that it is“ too early ”to say that one of these two options is privileged. In parallel, several failures in the security of the cathedral were identified, in particular in the alarm system of it, which contributed to delaying the call to the firefighters on the day of the fire, or on the electrical system, on one of the elevators. These malfunctions were not likely the cause of the fire, but may have allowed the flames to spread through the cathedral.
One final question. Will the approximately 830 million euros of national and international fundraising (350,000 donors) be sufficient for the reconstruction of Notre-Dame? Many doubt it. The international outpouring of generosity has been exceptional in two years, but is now strongly penalized and complicated by the pandemic. As usual in these cases costs will go up as everywhere else due to the pandemic.
The official site of Notre Dame from the Culture ministry of France on the work area and information in French: https://notre-dame-de-paris.culture.gouv.fr/fr/chantier
The official Notre Dame Cathedral on news: https://www.notredamedeparis.fr/actualites-et-agenda/
As a reminder, to arrive at Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris you can take the Metro/RER as metro line 4 Cité; Saint Michel – Notre-Dame RER B and C lines 1 and 11 Hôtel de Ville; line 10 Maubert-Mutualité / Cluny – La Sorbonne , lines 7 and 14 Châtelet – Les Halles as well here RER A and D. Of course, the best way is to come all the way walking from your spot in Paris!
And as in previus updates on the situation of Notre Dame Cathedral, here are my posts. Hope it helps tells you the whole story.
https://paris1972-versailles2003.com/2020/07/09/notre-dame-cathedral-update-july2020/
https://paris1972-versailles2003.com/2019/11/14/notre-dame-cathedral-update-nov19/
https://paris1972-versailles2003.com/2019/09/16/notre-dame-cathedral-update-sep19/
https://paris1972-versailles2003.com/2019/08/05/notre-dame-cathedral-update-aug19/
https://paris1972-versailles2003.com/2019/07/16/notre-dame-cathedral-jul19-update/
It is a monumental task but it will be done as per anything to do with French heritage in my belle France. Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris will shine again! And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 