bad-news-day.com reports: After Delacroix, Voltaire, Liszt, Berlioz, Balzac and a host of other legendary French cultural figures comes … the royal family of Qatar.
The venerable Hôtel Lambert,
hotel-lambert
a 17th-century mini-mansion in the heart of Paris, was recently sold to the Gulf royals, but the change is more than one of atmosphere. The new foreign owners plan a massive refurbishment – and have walked into a row on the scale of their £70m property’s painted ceilings.
According to Le Monde, the 4,000 pages of architects’ plans include the installation of four lifts, the creation of dozens of new bathrooms, air-conditioning and even an underground car park with an exit straight through the building’s famous curving wall on to the quai outside. Simultaneously, 19th-century additions such as skylights will be demolished, the roof altered and 17th-century-style chimney-pots added.
Read then entire article at: bad-news-day.com
What can you say? I can see why Paris would want to keep their landmarks intact. You would think it would be part of the purchasing agreement. In the U.S. when a city deems something as a Historical Landmark, special permission is needed to make any alterations. I would think Paris is the same. I am sure that any Historical Landmarks here in Qatar would want to be kept up to the standards that they have today and in the future. This could get tricky for Qatar Royals especially when it deals with Foreign Relations. I am sure that Paris and Qatar will come to an agreement that beneifits both parties. One thing I have found is that Qatar is very friendly to other countries and tries very hard to be a hospitible guest especially in someone elses country.
