25/04/2016 - 12:35
A preserved heritage
<p>I was walking around town on Saturday afternoon when I bumped into a British couple looking up at a recently restored building in the rue de l’Epée, just behind Dieppe’s main shopping street. We started talking and they seemed quite impressed by the way the structure had been preserved. I explained that the town was renowned for the restoration and preservation of its old buildings and especially for its beautiful inner courtyards. Delegations from around the world have visited, and continue to visit, Dieppe, which is seen as an example for the rehabilitation of old buildings and, most importantly, the eradication of <em>insalubrious housing. </em></p>
<p>Back in the nineties, substandard housing was a preoccupying problem in the town centre. Many historic buildings were seriously showing their age and insanitary flats were common. At the time, over 700 residences were vacant and some were even crumbling. Given the urgency of the situation, a major urban redevelopment scheme was introduced by the Council aiming to restore hundreds of homes in the historic heart of the town. Seventeen years later, the results of the operation are extremely positive: Dieppe’s Public-Private Partnership, the SEMAD, has rehabilitated over 1000 flats and houses throughout the town, along with dozens of retail units.</p>
<p>The restoration the British couple was looking at on Saturday is one of the latest, and most important, projects to be carried out by the SEMAD, together with a private property developer this time. When the scheme is completed – hopefully before the end of the year – tourists and locals will be able to walk through a lovely courtyard linking the rue de l’Epée to the Grande Rue. A 750 square-metre clothes shop, along with a brand new restaurant, will be built on the ground floor and the beautiful vaulted cellars will welcome a charming piano bar.</p>
<p>On the other side of the town centre, another famous building has also just been magnificently restored. Located on the Place Louis Vitet, <em>la Maison Miffant </em><em>is Dieppe’s oldest house. </em>Built in 1624, it magically survived the bombardment of 1694 but was literally starting to fall to pieces. Once again, the Council stepped in, and, after a year of restoration, the façade of the building is now looking rather splendid. As often in Dieppe, local heritage will be combined with modernity as work will soon begin at the rear of the house to build a new hotel and a housing complex.</p>
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