A Roman theater, churches, a viaduct, a lighthouse and even a barn ... Rue de Valois, the Minister of Culture and Stéphane Bern lifted the veil, Tuesday noon, on the selection of 18 "emblematic" sites which will benefit primarily from the Loto du Patrimoine, third edition. An announcement all the more awaited since it arrives almost four months late, due to the coronavirus crisis.
The selected monuments, some of which will adorn the scratch lotto tickets, represent all of the regions of France and overseas but also sweep the different typologies of heritage (industrial, religious, agricultural cultural ...) and the different eras. Their selection depends at the same time on their heritage interest, their situation of danger, but also on the quality of the safeguarding project which surrounds them.
In Ile-de-France, the committee has, for example, decided to help the Fort de Cormeille-en-Parisis (Val-d'Oise), a military building built between 1874 and 1877 to protect Paris from new invasions, after that of 1871. Unoccupied since 1977, it now suffers from numerous deteriorations despite the care of the association which deals with it.
In Brittany, it is the lighthouse, the fort and the barracks of Île aux Moines which will benefit from the lottery grants, as part of a tourist and cultural development. More surprising and necessarily more exotic, in Reunion, a suspension bridge over the East River, which threatens to collapse, is also one of these priority projects.
The share donated to the Heritage Foundation on the rise
The Heritage Lottery, which has already raised more than 46 million euros in two editions, will be launched in September. With several new features: first a new look for scratch tickets at 15 euros, but also additional games on each ticket. The maximum gain remains the same: 1.5 million euros, the largest proposed by the FDJ. As for the “classic” Loto, no less than five special draws will be organized during the Heritage Days, between September 9 and 19. Last, but not least, the latest innovation: the portion donated to the Heritage Foundation, fund managers, on tickets goes from 1.52 euros to 1.76 euros.
As good news never arrives alone, Stéphane Bern announced on Tuesday that the State had agreed to repay, each year, the taxes it levies on this Loto, as on all games of chance. A victory for the host, who has often been angry on the subject, but especially for sites in danger who still hope to benefit from subsidies.
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The disappointed of the day may be the winners of tomorrow: in September, the list of 103 monuments will be announced which will also benefit, but to a lesser extent, from the jackpot of the Bern mission.