A company that wants to make the priest a blue space

The Société des Amis du Presbytère de Saint-Michel-de-Bellechasse is campaigning for the 1739 building to become the blue space of the Chaudière-Appalaches.

• Read also: [EN IMAGES] Seventeen places to celebrate our heroes

Announced with great fanfare last week by the Legault government, 17 Blue Spaces in Quebec are meant to be historic and cultural venues. The project represents an investment of $259 million.

For Sylvie Luzon, president of the Society of Friends of the Church of Saint-Michel de Belchas, the priest, which is one of the oldest of its kind in North America, is “perfect” for hosting such a project.

Study in progress

She notes that a feasibility study is underway for major restoration projects at the priest, but also for the adjacent tithing barn, which dates back to 1818. The project, valued at “a few million dollars,” will then be submitted to the municipality next January.

The project includes three wings, including the Heritage Pavilion, in the heart of the priest. Among other things, there will be a space dedicated to the history and heritage of the Pelecas and Quebec coast.

A multifunctional room will also be built on the second floor. Its neighbour, the barn of the ten, will host a permanent exhibition of miniature objects related to the history of the municipality.

For his part, the mayor, Eric Tessier, does not close the door to the idea, but prefers not to comment, believing that he does not have to “judge its quality”. Rather, he is concerned about its cost and potential repercussions on tax notices for citizens.

The Office of the Minister of Culture has specified the announcement of the following places in the blue spaces “in due course”. “We are in the process of identifying the first buildings,” said company spokesman Louis-Julian Dufresne.

see also