The next tourist season in Percé, in Gaspésie, is set to be something very special. The tourist information center will not be open, nor will the local museum. On the other hand, the Blue Space, the first of its kind in Quebec, is expected to welcome its first visitors. However, this newcomer to the region is far from unanimous.
In this cold month of January, a handful of workers are busy at the Frederick James Mansion. The roof and exterior cladding of the house built around 1888 were renovated. Carpenters are currently working to restore the interior of this old artist's house, located at the top of the cape overlooking the Percé rock, to its original condition. The workers interviewed by Le Devoir hope to complete their work by the summer.
The conversion was expensive. Almost 26 million dollars were spent on this project, which began with the displacement of around twenty meters of the building, which was threatened by erosion. Then workers placed this future Blue Space on a large concrete basement. A bunker-like entrance welcomes visitors.
No one in Percé can know the contents of the upcoming exhibition. Not even Mayor Cathy Poirier. “Who can do that? “I don’t even know,” she says, calling this renovation “commendable.”
When the Ministry of Culture was questioned by Le Devoir about the project's progress at the beginning of the year, it was stingy with information.
The construction site has also demolished the road that runs along the cape. The asphalt should be renewed this spring or fall by the city of Percé, but at the government's expense, according to the mayor. In principle, a parking lot should swallow up part of this postcard landscape. Here too, residents of the tourist capital Gaspésie are left in the dark about the details.
One opens, the other closes
While this new museum is scheduled to open, the Le Chafaud museum, also located in Percé, will not open its doors this summer. A first since it opened in 1983, 40 years ago.
“This is the first summer that we are not open unless someone comes forward,” complains Jean-Louis Lebreux, the man who runs the local institution from a distance. Some young people offered her the opportunity to take over the management of the museum, but she was quickly discouraged by the “working conditions” and lack of government support.
More than the lack of support for existing museums, it is the transformation of a creative house into an event space that discourages Mr. Lebreux. “There is no room for creativity in this place that has inspired so many artists. » The Frederick James Villa actually initially housed the work of the painter of the same name. The University of Laval then held art and architecture courses there until 2015.
The mayor of Percé is of the same opinion and would like to see it as a place of creation.
“There is unease everywhere in Percé,” summarizes Jean-Louis Lebreux.
This summer there is no tourist office in Percé
Another closure in Percé: the tourist information center. Due to budget constraints, the township is unable to provide the $168,000 it needs to operate.
“It's heartbreaking,” says Le Devoir Cathy Poirier, who says she is actively looking for solutions and is ready to make the building and staff available to anyone who wants it. “It's not a punishment. Financially, I have unavoidable expenses. We cannot limit the fire department. We have no choice. »
To keep this office open, taxes would have to increase by an additional 4.5%, while citizens' bills would already have to increase by 7%, she explains. Tourists traveling through Gaspésie this summer will have to be on their own to discover the gems of this tourist hotspot.