In Rennes, the Vilaine river is now open to the sky to serve as an "island of coolness"

During a site visit open to the press, the Socialist mayor recalled "the climate ambition but also the desire to beautify the city" with this project.

The excavator, positioned on a floating barge, was demolishing the two kiosks of the former parking lot, piece by piece, on Thursday morning. It will continue working until the beginning of next week to finish crushing the remaining concrete slab.

Built in 1963, at the time of the triumphant automobile and to meet the parking needs in the city center, the parking lot covered nearly 6.600 m2 of the river over 270 meters.

In total, 6.000 tonnes of concrete and 1.000 tonnes of bitumen were removed by river.

With the demolition phase completed, work will continue until mid-2028 to build, among other things, a footbridge, pontoons, bleachers and to plant 200 trees on the site, with the aim of creating an "island of coolness" in the heart of the city.

According to climate forecasts, the prospect for Rennes is to experience "a climate equivalent to that of Toulouse" by 2050, Ms. Appéré reminded everyone.

The mayor also assured that the removal of this parking lot with nearly 300 spaces had "no impact on the number of people in the city center", based on GPS data.

A local resident, Gilles Philippart, 50, is delighted to enjoy a "nice view of the river" from his apartment, which previously overlooked a "not very elegant" parking lot.

The total budget for the project, funded by the city and the metropolitan area, amounts to 29 million euros.

Several cities have carried out work to rehabilitate their river, including Seoul (South Korea), Utrecht (Netherlands) and Quimper (Finistère).