Notre Dame Cathedral on fire!

[CincySportsFan]

It's kinda sad that it takes something like this for people to step up. I read yesterday that the cathedral needed over $185mil in repairs, and they've only been able to raise $50mil.

 

"Only."

 

Latest figure I've seen is $450 million has now been pledged. @TheDeuce , I think the point is that when the needed amount was much, much lower...they still were only about 25% funded.

[TheDeuce]

Latest figure I've seen is $450 million has now been pledged. @TheDeuce , I think the point is that when the needed amount was much, much lower...they still were only about 25% funded.

 

I'm sure my opinion will be unpopular, so I'll just keep it to myself. :lol2:

[nees1212]

"Only."

 

Yeah, I know $50mil is a lot. But my understanding from the article I read was that this was raised over several years of fundraising. They launched a campaign in the last year or two targeting Americans as we have a history of giving more.

[CincySportsFan]

I'm sure my opinion will be unpopular, so I'll just keep it to myself. :lol2:

 

Hey, you're good. Everybody's entitled to their opinion.

[bugatti]

Sad to see such an iconic building be in flames. As a Catholic, that was one of the cooler things I got to do while living in Europe.

 

I am confused as to how they know how much money they need to raise before fully assessing the damage? Requirements might be different in other countries, but I assume they have insurance for some of this, right? $450MM is a lot of money.

[TheDeuce]

Hey, you're good. Everybody's entitled to their opinion.

 

It's an 800 year old building... Should they really be spending $450 MILLION to renovate it?

[bugatti]

It's an 800 year old building... Should they really be spending $450 MILLION to renovate it?

Yes!

 

Sincerely,

Quasimodo

[bugatti]

I believe there is something to be said about the preservation of history, so I would hope it is brought back to standards. Now if something is a complete loss, then it feels fake building back from scratch. I do not understand how it can cost that much money, but what do I know?

[Getslow]

I guess the archbishop has said that the three rose windows from the 13th century have been preserved. Early reports was that the heat blew them out. That would be great news as those are absolutely irreplaceable.

[CincySportsFan]

Let me clarify the $450 million figure that I posted...that was the amount that had been PLEDGED so far. It looks like that number is growing.

 

Apple, French firms pledge millions to rebuild Notre Dame after fire

French companies including L'Oreal and luxury groups LVMH and Kering have pledged millions of euros to help rebuild Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris after it was severely damaged in a fire Monday night.

 

Francois-Henri Pinault, whose Artemis holding company owns a controlling stake in Kering, pledged 100 million euros ($113 million), while Bernard Arnault, chair of LVMH, gave 200 million euros. Kering owns labels such as Gucci, Saint Laurent and Alexander McQueen, while LVMH's star brands include Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Moet & Chandon champagne.

 

"This tragedy is striking all the French people, and beyond that, all those attached to spiritual values. Faced with this tragedy, everyone wishes to give life back to this jewel of our heritage as soon as possible," Pinault, chair of Artemis said in a statement.

 

 

Meanwhile, cosmetics group L'Oreal and its majority shareholder the Bettencourt Meyers family and the Bettencourt Schueller foundation said they would donate 200 million euros, according to a Reuters report.

 

French energy company Total will also contribute 100 million euros, its CEO Patrick Pouyanne said Tuesday, Reuters reported, while consulting firm Capgemini will donate 1 million euros, it said in an online statement.

 

Plus it looks like Apple has come out and said it will be donating (just no figure given). But, based upon what's in the article, my simple math takes it to 500 million euros ($565 million).

 

But what I have NOT seen...is the actual amount it's estimated to cost to do the repairs.

[CincySportsFan]

Actually, my simple math was off...it's 600 million euros. So that'd put it in the neighborhood of $678 million.

[mcpapa]

Yes!

 

Sincerely,

Quasimodo

 

 

I have a hunch as to how it started.

 

Sincerely,

Quasimodo

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

It's an 800 year old building... Should they really be spending $450 MILLION to renovate it?

 

Eghh....the US just spent $60 million to renovate just the dome of the US Capitol. That's only a 219 year old building. We also spent $15 million to repair the stones that the earthquake shifted at the top of the Washington Monument, which is basically a 135 year old pointy stone column. Obviously those are significantly less money, but still.

 

Apparently when people realize that something like Notre Dame could be gone forever, they realize it's worth the money to restore it.

[CincySportsFan]

An estimated $790 million has been raised so far. Because the building is older than 1905, France actually owns the building...and is self-insured...meaning, there's no policy.

 

And, Reuters is reporting that the repair costs have been estimated to be somewhere in the range of $8 BILLION. (Somebody check on @TheDeuce ...he probably just had a heart attack.)

[Voice of Reason]

There was a hospital completed in Sweden in 2018 that cost $7.5 billion.

 

However, I find it hard to believe it will cost that much. A new roof, new steeple and fire cleanup for $8 billion?