Notre Dame primps for its grand post-blaze return. But why does the cathedral look unfinished?

PARIS — The bells of Notre Dame are chiming again, but scaffolding still clinging to the cathedral's exterior is puzzling some Parisians, who question whether its grand post-blaze reopening is more symbolic than substantive.

When French President Emmanuel Macron inspects the rebuilding work on Friday, in his final tour of the construction site, he'll see the renovated interiors with his own eyes. But he also won't be able to miss the construction work and cranes that clutter the exterior of the nearly 900-year-old monument.

The day after the April 2019 blaze that destroyed the spire and roof, Macron pledged that ''we will rebuild the cathedral to be even more beautiful, and I want it to be completed within five years."

The reality has proven more complex.

While the interior will be ready to host visitors and the faithful on Dec. 8 for the first time since 2019, scaffolding at the base of the newly-restored spire will remain into 2025 and for another three years on the monument's east side, Philippe Jost, who is masterminding the reconstruction, told The Associated Press this month.

Unfinished exterior puzzles some Parisians

The blaze and rebuilding that turned the cathedral into a no-go zone for the public left a literal hole in the heart of Paris, and many locals are longing for it to be filled by the reopening.

Some, however, had been expecting the monument to look as pristine on the outside as officials say it does once again on the inside. Around 140 million euros (around $150 million) of unspent funds remain in the reconstruction budget -- an indication of the scale of work that remains to be completed. Cranes and makeshift worker facilities — showers, changing rooms and alike — still feature. And while a lot of scaffolding has been removed, tons of it remain.

''It's an eyesore,'' said Anne Leclerc, 54, a lawyer. "It feels like a half-finished project.''

Jean-Baptiste Lefèvre, a retired 65-year-old teacher, recalled Macron's five-year completion wish, and questioned whether the reopening is being rushed prematurely to please him. Macron's second and last term ends in 2027.

''It's politics, and he wants it to be finished while he's still president,'' Lefèvre suggested.

''What's the point of such a big reopening when it's not even finished?'' Lefèvre said, gesturing toward a crane. "It looks like a construction zone.''

Five years is short for Notre Dame

In truth, Notre Dame has been a building site for years — even before the fire. Scaffolding was already in place in 2019 for a previous restoration effort that wasn't completed because of the April 15 blaze. That structure of melted, twisted metal then had to be cut away before rebuilding could even begin.

Some of the worst damage was to the medieval monument's roof and its dense latticework of wooden beams, so complicated that it was nicknamed ''the forest.'' The flames also brought down the spire, sending charred debris into the cathedral's interior.

Architecture experts say the pace of restoration has been remarkable, particularly given the constraints of 21st-century safety regulations and the need for historical accuracy.

Historians also urge patience, reminding critics that Notre Dame's original construction spanned nearly 200 years, beginning in 1163.

''Notre Dame's reconstruction is a sign of hope for everyone,'' Rev. Olivier Ribadeau-Dumas, the cathedral rector, has said.

COVID pandemic delays

Initial hopes for a full restoration by 2024 dimmed after the COVID-19 pandemic slowed work. The late General Jean-Louis Georgelin, the former reconstruction chief, tempered expectations in 2023, saying the reopening would be ''partial.''

Macron's office frames the restoration as a triumph for French can-do, likening it to other national milestones such as the Paris Olympics.

His tour of the monument on Friday will be his seventh since the fire.

Presidential officials say he'll see gleaming white finishes of restored stonework, vaults rebuilt with precision to their original 13th-century design, and the once-again radiant golden cross at the altar.

Murals, including those in the Saint-Marcel Chapel, are as vibrantly colorful again as when first painted and sculptures of Louis XIII and XIV glisten with refreshed colors, they say.

The grand reopening

After a Dec. 7 ceremony where Macron will give a speech on the cathedral forecourt, an inaugural mass the next day will signal its return to public life.

The public will be welcomed until 10 p.m. during the first week, with free, ticketed entry. Liturgical life then resume in full from Dec. 16.

The Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, expects Notre Dame will quickly surpass its pre-blaze visitor numbers. He is bracing for 15 million visitors annually -- seemingly confident that for most, the work that's unfinished won't be a cardinal disappointment.