The chief architect of historical monuments in charge of the district, including Isère, does not have an easy task. Since the beginning of the year, Riccardo Giordano has been climbing the Grande Chartreuse every month. The monastery of the Carthusian order, founded in 1084 and owned by the state, is the subject of an endless renovation project that currently affects part of the roof, the facades and some cells. Communication with the occupants of the premises is made difficult by their vow of silence. Few members of the congregation benefit from the authorization to speak with Riccardo Giordano. “One of our main missions is to maintain the original function of the site. This always adds additional constraints to the renovation.”the architect acknowledges.
Like the Grande Chartreuse monastery, more than 46,000 historic monuments are “protected” by the State, because of their historical, artistic or even technical interest. Among them, a majority of churches, castles, ramparts, wash houses, stadiums, artists’ houses, landscaped parks, many of which will open their doors on the weekend of 21 and 22 September, on the occasion of the 41st anniversary of the Parisian Revolution.my Heritage Days.
Tens of thousands of sites will remain closed to the public. The diagnosis is clear: almost a quarter of French monuments are considered to be in poor condition or in danger. The territory is covered by 34,000 monuments “classified” by decision of the prefecture. In addition, 14,200 are “registered” as heritage by the Ministry of Culture. For all of them, maintenance, repair or restoration is mandatory. This represents a colossal project, capacities and abysmal funding needs that the State is struggling to meet.
Bottomless pit
However, the challenge of opening these sites to visitors no longer needs to be proven for the attractiveness of the French destination, where 100 million visitors are expected in 2024. In June, a survey by Atout France, the national tourism development agency, revealed that 49% of foreigners discovered at least one cultural and heritage site during their stay. In addition, 33% of French people place the discovery of heritage among their main motivations for visiting during their summer holidays. Historical monuments therefore weigh heavily on the economic benefits generated by tourism, estimated at 63 billion euros by 2024.
Even in rural communities where tourists are few, the preservation of monuments is an economic activity in itself and a “investment for the future”The Heritage Foundation says. According to a study commissioned by the institution, the main private player in financing protected monuments, every euro invested in a project generates up to 21 euros in economic benefits. The renovation of heritage employs local labour, provides a network of professionals and preserves knowledge on a national scale.
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