For Frédéric Berkati, the director of this branch and his 20 collaborators, one subject must be at the top of the list: mold, which is invading several homes in this priority district of the city. “This problem is not new! alert Gildas Querec, president of the Residents Heart of Ménimur association. Many homes are affected, even if it is difficult to precisely quantify the extent of the problem. » And for good reason, of the 1,300 social housing units in this sector, no precise census has been carried out, and the causes of humidity are varied. Added to ventilation problems are infiltrations and water damage that has not been or poorly repaired. “We are aware of all these problems, and we are not putting blinders on ourselves,” defends Frédéric Berkati, who received the president of Résidents coeur de Ménimur on Thursday October 24 for an overview of the situation.
Infiltration through roof terraces
The main culprits for these mold problems, according to the agency director: water infiltration through the roofs. “Morbihan Habitat is undertaking work to repair the roof terraces by replacing the waterproofing complex while improving the insulation,” he specifies. In 2023, the budget dedicated to this work, in Ménimur housing, amounted to €401,000. In 2024, it increased to €536,000. “And we continue to schedule this type of work on our residences.” As for water damage, the social landlord explains “to support tenants in the insurance process. »
An audit since mid-2024 on ventilation
Infiltration causes even more damage as the property is old and the homes are equipped with assisted natural ventilation (VNA), which is less effective than modern controlled mechanical ventilation (VMC). Shortly before the summer of 2024, Morbihan Habitat launched an audit on the ventilation systems, which would also make it possible to quantify the renovation needs: “I hope to obtain a budget line for 2025, which will allow work to be launched on a block” test” and why not then move on to other buildings,” argues Frédéric Berkati. He nevertheless notes “factors that aggravate mold, such as overoccupancy of housing, or obstruction of air inlets (often to ward off the cold, Editor's note). »
In January 2023, Vannes Golfe Habitat, former social housing landlord in Ménimur, merged with Lorient Habitat and Bretagne Sud Habitat to become Morbihan Habitat. As the transition takes time, the “new” social landlord says it has gradually taken over the subject in 2024. “These subjects take time, especially since we do not want to make small repairs one after the other,” underlines the director of 'agency. The objective is to effectively deal with the problem, in line with other work, such as that in favor of thermal insulation. » In the meantime, a meeting has been made in a few months between the president of the Résidents Cœur de Ménimur association and the agency director to take stock of the situation.
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