Unexpected windfall: Thiberville inherits a Parisian fortune
The Norman town has received the bulk of an inheritance from an unknown Parisian, Roger Thiberville, who never set foot on its cobblestones. The town will gain several million euros, an amount roughly equal to a five-year budget, as reported by the newspaper "Guardian".
The deceased only had one connection with the town: it is also named Thiberville.
The town received a fortune
Roger Thiberville, a meteorologist from a family of vineyard owners, did not set any conditions on the town except one: he wishes to be buried in the town cemetery.
Surprised and delighted, the residents and officials are now considering how to allocate the unexpected gift.
- It’s an exceptional sum of money. Obviously the amount is beyond imagination, said Guy Paris, the mayor of Thiberville, to a local radio station.
- We don't know yet what we will do with it. We’re not going to spend it all. We’re going to manage this dowry as we’ve always done with our municipal budget – with prudence and responsibility, he added.
Here is what they want to allocate the money to
Thiberville now plans to pay off a bank loan of over £335,000, taken for the construction of a primary school. Since the town is a public entity, it will not have to pay inheritance tax. Among the potential projects to be funded from the inheritance are a garden with a playground, a pétanque court with solar panels that will provide shade, and a football field.
According to the mayor, Thiberville lived modestly in Paris, where he nevertheless owned four apartments.
Thiberville, the portal assessed, is an unassuming town that boasts a castle from the late 19th century and a former ribbon factory, but beyond that, it doesn't stand out particularly against other Norman communes.
