“It was the year of the Tour de France, the start in Brest”, in 2021. “I called my son to tell him: the house, you will see it on TV! “. Freshly repainted “in yellow, to recall the insulation on the gable” rather than the Tour leader’s jersey, the facade of Marie-France Brenière, rue de Quimper, in Brest, a stone’s throw from the Francis-Le Blé stadium, was become recognizable. “It was my neighbor who suggested this to me: he wanted to repaint his but, to receive a subsidy, there had to be at least two people. I agreed, provided he took care of it. He wanted blue.” It went well together… “And it didn’t cost me much in painting…”, she smiles.
“I dreamed of having a blue house and I had read in Le Télégramme that we could get help, including rue de Quimper,” confirms Pascal Clervoy. “I showed the Métropole colorist a blue plastic box lid, the color I wanted. I was told that it was a bit strong but I replied that you had to dare, go for it! The commission agreed. Six months later, I received €800. Normally, it was 700, but more when there were two of us presenting the same file. I was the first in the street and I told the other neighbors about it.”
“My neighbor across the street sent me photos”
Which followed, in 2022. “We discussed it and we found it very nice,” recalls Marie de Araujo. “With the help, it was quite tempting. I would have liked a fuchsia, the colorists showed me lighter tones. I said to myself that after all, it wasn’t bad, this pink, a little salmon, like the jacket she wore on the day of our photo. “During the work, I went on vacation, but my neighbor across the street sent me photos…”.
I was told that it was a bit strong but I replied that you had to dare, go for it!
The one next door, Marie-France Thomas, remembers the “three-way meetings” with another neighbor who is no longer there. “We already got along well but this joint project brought us closer together. We chose the colors with the consulting colorist, and saw what could go together and hold up over time. And unity pleases, even when one of the colors pleases less.” She remembers thinking, when she saw the paint being applied, that it was flashier, on this scale, than she had imagined. “But it changes color when it dries. I’m happy, it brings life! “.
Public aid covered 40% of costs
And financially, with the professional who did the work? “We had several quotes made and we negotiated. The fact of there being three may have helped to lower the price,” supposes Marie-France. So much so that the €800 in public aid financed around 40% of its expenses at the time.
There are many other single-family homes on this long street (one of them, it seems, will follow suit) but some owners are not interested, preferring their cream homes. Unlike the number of people who pass through this busy lane, especially on match days, and who find the effect pretty.
And let’s not forget that the people who benefit the most from these bold tones are the neighbors across the street! “When I heard they were going to do this, I thought it would be funny. But ultimately, I changed my mind and I find it very cool! Especially since here, the sky is often gray,” notes Chantal Le Gall. “You have to dare… It’s better than the discreet renovations we’re used to. And the people who come to my house say the same thing.”
#French
