Toulouse: the “rotten” Sundays of the inhabitants of Empalot
A small corner of nature is invaded every weekend by 50 to 100 people who feast and dance until nightfall. The residents can’t take it anymore.
The building is brand new. It faces the Brique rouge, the cultural center of Empalot, a popular district of Toulouse. At its foot, rows of leafy trees with wide branches, extended by footings. On Sundays, if the weather is good, its residents are forced to hole up at home or “go green” to ensure a decent Sunday rest.
From 50 to 100 people invest the surroundings of the residence and make a racket of all the devils. Florence has an apartment whose terrace overlooks the little wood. She recounts these “agitated” Sundays: “It’s just hellish. In the morning, they play football, it’s still fine. It’s after that it thickens. They park their vehicles at the foot of the trees, sometimes there is a small catch with vans. The women set up a large table and light the barbecues. They have hi-fi equipment with big speakers and put the music on full blast. There is also a lot of alcohol. All day I see men urinating. I could do without such a spectacle! We tried to negotiate with them but nothing worked. They explain to us that they are delivered here before the construction of the building and that they intend to keep these moments of conviviality. »
The inhabitants of the building are watching with apprehension for the return of sunny days.
Big son and urine
Like Damien, tenant on the first floor: “I took possession of my T2 in July 2021. It was a Sunday… I was immediately put in the mood. They play very rhythmic music. Despite the double glazing, the bass vibration is just intolerable. There, with the days stretching out and the high temperatures, I’m expecting a rotten summer. I’m going to have to spend Sundays with friends to rest a bit. If I had been made aware of all this mess before, I would never have taken this apartment. »
There are dozens of videos of these Sunday feasts circulating. It is enough to watch them to realize that the residents of the building do not increase the nuisances. The town hall of Toulouse is not standing idly by, it has had plots laid to block access to vehicles on the rue Maria-Mombiola side. “The elected officials are behind us, that’s good, but they can’t do everything. The police come by regularly to ask these people to turn the music down, but as soon as it starts, they turn it back on. The only one chosen that could solve the problem would be for law enforcement to ticket a few of them. To my knowledge, this has never been done before,” says Florence.