Wednesday, 8:45 a.m., at the foot of the large Pontcarral bar. Here, the situation is approximately the same as in the Great Plain. We are in fact faced with a huge dilapidated condominium where slumlords thrive on the backs of poverty and the shortage of housing. The big difference is that instead of having three owners like in the east of the city, here we find a multitude, some of whom live on site.
« The situation deteriorated little by little for years but today it is no longer possible », Confides an early resident, who recounts the disrepair which today affects this city built in 1962.
In a hurry to get to college, Yacine admits that “ It’s not great to write Pontcarral on your CV. That’s all I can say “. His struggle to find an internship of 3e and the hiring discrimination experienced by his neighborhood friends convinced him of this reality. “ It’s getting hot, sir. It’s the reputation », confirms a comrade next to him.
Au 3e floor, a man with a cap screwed on his head and a scarf tight around his neck, sips a coffee leaning on the railing of the passageway. “ It’s much better », he quickly blurted out, not at all decided to let himself be bothered. “ But I go out to drink my coffee. I go home and don’t talk to anyone. » We won’t know any more.
Sleep merchants
At the bottom of the building, Bernadette walks her dog and is much more pleasant. Especially since she has a lot to say. “ Nobody cares, everyone does what they wantshe laments. And when we call the trustee, nothing changes. No, it’s really not a place to come, not at all », she asserts before recounting her house arrest in a voice where anger and resignation mix.
« So I have a landlord who is, as we say, a real slumlord. », says the retiree who lives with a 3-figure pension in a 70 m apartment2 covered in humidity, partly due to heating that no longer works. “ I asked him to do work regarding my state of health. I am diabetic, I have trouble getting around and the mold makes me sick. He replies that it’s not his fault and that he doesn’t have the money anyway. “, she continues. However, he does not hesitate to come every month to collect the rent, which still amounts to 700 euros. When we know that in Pontcarral, housing of this type sells for around 20,000 euros, the investment can prove ultra-profitable for unscrupulous owners.
Climbing up like a cuckoo, Bernadette, 77 years old, also says that there is “ 3-4 days, he came to my house furious and accompanied to impress me. You realize ? I answered him : what’s wrong with you, you didn’t have your bowl last night ? “. He came to demand from his tenant the payment of “ a so-called unpaid debt. I went to get him all the receipts and asked him if he wasn’t ashamed. It calmed him down. But he just said he was wrong. No excuses, nothing ! “. And when Bernadette becomes more pressing about her rights, he replies that “ you have to go somewhere else. The problem is that I try, but unfortunately I can’t afford to leave », she regrets. As for insecurity issues, she agrees that it has calmed down a lot. “ They caught the big guy », slips the retiree, who assures that she has never had a problem with these young people. “ They said hello to me, offered to bring me shopping », she smiles. THE “ muscular police raids, with machine guns, it was scary ! “, she remembers.
On the health side, however, the problems do not only concern housing that is poorly maintained by its owner. “ We have rats roaming around and an elevator that can be broken for months », denounces Bernadette again.
A hope all the same: “ We have a new trustee, rejoices Gilles Pillard, one of the co-owners occupying the residence. Knock on wood, I hope it goes well “, he advances, pointing the finger at the many other co-owners “ who don’t live in Pontcarral and who tend not to care a bit “. Especially since the charges don’t fit as they should. “ Today we are around 400 000 euros while we should almost be double with the 315 apartments », explains the former president of the union council.
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