“The emptiness of the heart and the emptiness of function. » This is what the residents of Laglorieuse faced, in May 2024, after the death of mayor Jean-Pierre Allais, following a devastating illness, at the age of 75. It is Marc de Valicourt, who joined the Municipal Council during the 2020 elections as deputy in charge of roads, budget and investment files, who today wears the sash of chief magistrate, after having been elected by the Council on July 5, 2024.
You had never been elected before entering the Municipal Council as a deputy in 2020. What made you take the plunge?
It's something that's been on my mind for some time, but I knew I needed a little time to get involved. As I have always been at the head of different companies, I could not imagine committing myself to an elective mandate to twiddle my thumbs.
And then I took a step back from my business (an insurance brokerage firm, Editor's note). I sold the entire key account portfolio. My daughter took over the other part. I am still co-manager, but she is the one who runs the store, I am only there to provide support. In 2020, I took the step to run for town hall. We had a pleasant start to our mandate, we got along very well with Mayor Jean-Pierre Allais, until his sudden death.
How was the Municipal Council organized?
In fact, with Jean-Pierre Allais, we had an agreement at the time. He hadn't planned to run again in 2026, and I was a bit on track, that's why I took care of the investment files. When he died in May, we all got together. There was the shock of disappearance and behind it, the void. I have been designated as temporary mayor for the remaining two years of my mandate.
How was the start of your term as mayor?
It got off to a flying start, there were things in progress, which had to be resumed and completed: the realization of the twinning with the Alsatian town of Rosenau and the inauguration, in August, of the public garden square , which we called Espace Gérard-Apesteguy, who remained mayor for almost thirty years before Jean-Pierre Allais. He also died and we wanted to honor his memory.
It was a delicate exercise, an in-between between the mayor, deceased, and me, “appointed” we will say. There is this transition which does not allow me to really master all the subjects.
What changes did you face when taking on these new responsibilities?
You actually tip over. My commitment took shape and scope. We find ourselves a pilot, that’s what makes the difference. There is a weight of responsibility that is significant. When you are mayor, it's everyday life. Intellectually, you have to follow, have all the files in mind.
And then it's tension. We only have one town hall secretary, and even if she is very efficient and dedicated, you cannot let her work alone, otherwise you demobilize everyone. I am present at the town hall every morning. But despite the circumstances, there is a satisfaction in the burden. I'm not going backwards. I am combative and satisfied.
You now sit on the Marsan Agglomeration Council. This is also something you discover…
This is the second effect. It's a heavy machine with important, strategic issues, you have to participate, be an actor. And at the moment, in terms of the diary, it's almost every day. Fortunately, elected officials rely on the skills of the technical services, which do an enormous amount of work, this is the strength of an Agglo, it has teams to work on. We are there to decide, to make decisions and directions. It becomes a collective work and there is the other discovery: the political aspect, which we do not have here. We try to work with concrete and useful projects for our community.
Exactly, what projects are on track in your municipality?
We will soon have the establishment of an autonomous Api mini-market. It will arrive on January 14 and will open a month later. We were lucky enough to have land in front of the café bar, it was the owner who donated it to the town. The grocery store will have an ideal location. I also had the mayor of Pouydesseaux who has just opened hers, they are delighted with it. It’s a real service to the population. And here, it also makes sense because we have the municipal post office: the grocery store will strengthen this local service. We are also in the process of combining this project with that of an associative café.
What does this project consist of?
The owner of the café bar has decided to sell the walls. We asked ourselves the question: do we let it happen, at the risk of losing our one and only business in the village, or do we seize this opportunity to invest?
We held a public meeting with residents and the Cercles de Gascogne to launch the idea of an associative café and see how the population would welcome it. We were very surprised by the number of participants and volunteers to take care of it. I realize that people need places to socialize. In the old restaurant room, we will make a meeting room.
This place could become a House of Associations. We would be in the heart of village life, where people of different ages and backgrounds come together. With the grocery store next door, people will be there, will meet, joke, drink coffee. To use a fashionable term, it’s intergenerational. We find a kind of village soul and that’s something I care a lot about, it’s my style. Now, we must put together the financing files so that it is operational for 2026.
A farmer's status
In addition to his duties as mayor, Marc de Valicourt is a farmer, a status he values. “I have a family farm in Laglorieuse. Large crops were grown there. I went into it with the strategy of converting it to organic. It's a terrible job, we have to hire outside labor to weed. In short, the profitability is zero, and the physical effort is maximum! I've been farming for over twenty years, it's a status I value. It's a passion. And then it is the justification of the property, that is to say that it must be alive. »
He also reconstituted the property's domestic orchard and worked with the Regional Plant Conservatory of Aquitaine in Montesquieu, to identify local species that once existed. “It grows slowly. You have to be patient. Here too, it's organic, there is no treatment. But it's for fun, and at least I can make my pots of jam. »
