Since its installation in 2019, the MeM has quickly become a very popular place for the people of Rennes, who appreciate its guinguette and its huge outdoor space but also its marquee where concerts are organized several times a week. This new cultural place is however the object of a virulent conflict between residents of the Prévalaye and the Center for the Production of Contemporary Words (CPPC) which manages the place. Well known for its Mythos festival, the structure directed by Maël Le Goff is accused by local residents of benefiting from “passenger rights” to continue to organize concerts in a tent that is not soundproof.
Thursday, June 15, the association of residents of the Sainte-Foix road went to court. By means of a contentious appeal lodged before the administrative court, the local residents are contesting the precarious building permit granted by the city of Rennes to the CPPC. ” That can not continue. We already have three reports from the city services which attest to the excesses of sound emergences during the concerts. But it continues. And at each concert, the walls of the house shake,” laments Anne-Sophie, one of the residents of the collective.
Decibels and decision making reconciliation deaf
Several attempts at conciliation have been undertaken by the municipality but the two parties seem irreconcilable. In March, measurements were taken during a concert by the band Deluxe. Results: “In our daughter’s room, with the window closed, we observed emergences of +10 decibels. In our garden, it was +15 to +18 decibels”, lamented Guillaume, resident of the street. However, the law is clear. These emergences must not exceed +3 dB.
As the temporary occupancy lease expired in early 2023, the city decided to extend it for a period of two years. Time to design and fit out a new marquee that is better soundproofed and adapted to hosting contemporary music concerts. “The decision to extend the occupancy agreement is considered. We did not want the CPPC to cease its activity by adjoining the new marquee. It would have been dramatic for the whole team. The episodes of confinement had a strong impact on the performing arts “, had then justified the assistant to the culture Benoît Careil.
It will be up to the administrative justice to decide.