“It’s not every day that a notary calls me to tell me that the City is going to receive an inheritance,” remembers Jean Dionis du Séjour, mayor of Agen. Even less a private mansion among the most remarkable in Agen, the Hôtel Escouloubre, bequeathed by Marie-Rose Françoise Couffignal, widow of Jean-Louis Henri Couderc, a family which made its fortune, among other things, in porcelain.
Today the question arises: what to do with this building on rue Lacépède? The first instinct was to open it to the public, during Heritage Days, in 2023, the year of the legacy. Many Agenais were able to enjoy the place, discover the Aubusson tapestry in one of the rooms, the sculptures and the park which has century-old trees.
Working group
The future of this former mansion is not clear. This is not as obvious as for other inheritances made to the City: the paintings of Goya, bequeathed by Count Chaudordy and the impressionist works, offered by Doctor Louis Brocq. “But this question of the future of heritage, the City is asking itself for all of its buildings, from that of the McDonald au Pin to the character house on rue Louis-Vincent which houses the day center,” specifies the mayor.
When the last budget was drawn up, a working group was created to think about the future of this 2,700 m² property. Should it be transformed? Open it to the Agenais? An option seriously considered is also the transfer, “in respect of the last wishes of Mrs. Couderc to pay tribute to the memory of her parents”, the elected officials specified at the time. Nearly a million euros would be expected.
The municipality therefore commissioned a specialized firm, Ernst & Jung. “All avenues have been studied, this Escouloubre hotel, we will pay very close attention to it.” The working group has now submitted its report. “We must examine it and it is the entire Municipal Council which will make the decision,” says the mayor cautiously.
