Two towns near Caen deprive themselves of Christmas lights
By Writing Caen
Published on
In some villages around Caen (Calvados), Christmas lights remain a popular tradition, maintained even in the midst of an energy crisis. North of Caen, two municipalities made the opposite choice, and goes without light decorations at the end of 2022.
” It’s expensive “
Since the beginning of December, there is no no garlands or other electrical installations in the streets of Carpiquet and Saint-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe. So decided the elected officials of these two municipalities, members of Caen-la-mer. Pascal Sérard, the mayor of Carpiquet, a slice:
Is it serious, today, to put lighting everywhere? We stop, it’s expensive. We want to lead by example in saving energy.
For his part, Stéphane Le Helley, his counterpart from Saint-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe, explains: “The decision of the municipal council is part ofa comprehensive approach to energy sobriety in municipal buildings and in public spaces. »
According to him, “as the municipality is not linked to a service provider by multi-year contract, there is a total saving on consumption and the cost of installation, ie around €2,500”.
Handmade decorations
To preserve the Christmas spirit, the elected officials opted for a “horizontal decoration”, consisting of colored wooden patterns, fir trees with red ribbons, a mailbox in the colors of Santa Claus and even a chalet. for him to rest there.
Most of these elements were manufactured by municipal technicians and installed with the help of a few volunteer residents.
Understanding locals?
What is the reaction of the population? According to Stéphane Le Helley, the absence of illuminations is noticed. “Some residents told us of their regret at seeing the town less bright. “Before correcting:” But many understand our approach. Pascal Sérard is convinced of this: “The fundamentals of Christmas are there, people find that very good. »
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