A call for donations, to finance the reconstruction of cabin tchanquée n°3. The city of La Teste-de-Buch, in the Arcachon basin, manager of the two tchanquées cabins which are part of the postcard setting of the basin, launched this Monday with the Heritage Foundation a public donation campaign, with inhabitants of the municipality of Gironde and the surrounding area, to finance part of the reconstruction project for this hut.
“We are missing 366,000 euros, announced Monday the mayor of La Teste Patrick Davet, and I invite all the inhabitants to participate in donations. Everyone loves these tchanquées cabins, I have no doubt about the success of this collection. “The elected specifies however that, even if this one would not be fruitful, “the work would indeed be carried out”.
“Forced to shave it and start from scratch”
“This cabin belonged to a family until 2021, recalls Patrick Davet. THE Coastal conservatory gave it formal notice to carry out work because the structure was becoming dangerous and threatened to collapse, but this owner could not, the Conservatory recovered the cabin [qui est située sur le domaine public maritime] and transferred it to us. We now manage it, so it’s up to the city to carry out this work. “The municipality had already spent 130,000 euros in 2021 to consolidate the pillars, “but a renovation proved impossible, which is why we are now forced to shave it and start from scratch. »
The cabin will be rebuilt identically, using, in part, wood from the user forest of La Teste – ravaged by the great fires of 2022 -, except for the piles which will be made of exotic wood. due to their immersion in seawater. Work should start between October and November, and the end of the project is scheduled for May 2024.
“The basin without the cabins on stilts is not the basin”
“If there are two tchanquées huts today, originally there was only one, built in 1883 by an oyster farmer called Martin Pivert”, recalls the town of La Teste. Placed on simple wooden stilts, this fragile cabin was destroyed in 1943 by a storm. The construction of cabin tchanquée n°3, known as “with red shutters”, began in 1945. Its neighbour, cabin n°53 known as “with white shutters”, was built in 1948. This one, also managed by the city, has already benefited from a renovation campaign in 2007.
But what were these huts used for, which are uncovered at low tide? “Contrary to what is often said, they were not used to monitor the oyster beds,” explains Patrick Davet. These were simply resorts, people came here to fish, hunt, bathe. “The elected official believes that these constructions, “unique in France”, are now “part of our culture. » « The basin without the cabins on stilts is not the basin. »
The municipality wishes to open hut n°3 to the public in the future. “We cannot make great use of it, no one can rent it, recalls the mayor. It is made to be seen, approached, touched, but we cannot appropriate it. On the other hand, we want to introduce people to it, especially children, to explain to them what these huts were used for, and to have them admire the whole environment, with the island of birds and its fauna and flora. »
No more than nineteen people
The only change compared to the original cabin, it will be possible to go around the entire passageway, in the renovated version. “But we will not be able to climb there with more than nineteen, warns the mayor, for security reasons. »
The total cost of the project is just over one million euros, which will be financed by the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region (187,000 euros), the State (162,000 euros), the city of La Teste (80,000 euros) or even the Conservatoire du littoral (42,000 euros). Donations can be made on the Heritage Foundation website, by following this link.