“It was the chief’s surprise”: an ambitious project for the former La Réole gendarmerie

Reolais elected officials voted to sell the former gendarmerie during the City Council meeting on Wednesday, June 11. Purchased by a group specializing in the conversion of listed buildings, it is expected to house 26 homes by 2028.

Bats nest behind the shutters, the floor is littered with their droppings, walls are ripped open, wallpaper is torn off, sinks are on the floor, and false ceilings are cracked. "The building is in a catastrophic state. Everything needs to be redone, from floor to ceiling, and even the roof," assures Bruno Marty, the mayor of La Réole, in the former gendarmerie, a building of just over 1,300 m² that adjoins the Priory.

An unaffordable bill for the municipality, which took over management of the building, listed as a Historic Monument, in 2022 after a transfer from the Department. At least six million euros, he estimates. "That's the price of a typical project over two terms, but doing just that."

So when the François ^1er Group knocked on the town hall door, its eyes fixed on the building that had been abandoned for twenty years and a solid project in its suitcases, "it was a surprise." "I didn't even put it up for sale!" According to the mayor, the restoration and real estate conversion operator, particularly focused on listed properties that allow investors to benefit from tax breaks, was not the first to be interested in the building. But previously, these were "crazy projects," he dismisses. As for them, "we're sure they're serious."

The François ^1er Group aims to convert the former gendarmerie into a residential building with "luxury housing," according to Bruno Marty. The plan includes 26 dual-aspect apartments ranging from two- to three-room apartments spread over four levels. Eleven apartments would be intended for short-term rentals, in other words, furnished tourist accommodation, which would fill a gap in La Réole, according to the mayor. Part of the building would be used to create communal spaces, although the idea is not yet clear.

If the timeline follows the expected path, the signing of the sales agreement for €407,000—a satisfactory price for the mayor, "we're already happy to sell it," he says—would take place by September, and the building permit application would be filed in November. Obtaining this last point is the only suspensive clause of the project. The response is expected by April 2026 for work extending from the end of 2026 to delivery in 2028. Contacted Wednesday, June 11, the François- ^1er Group preferred to wait for the City Council's decision before commenting. That same evening, the issue did not generate any debate among elected officials. The proposal was adopted unanimously.

This sale of family heirlooms is more of a relief than a heartbreak, given the burden of maintaining listed buildings on the town. "If we don't sell, we'll have to redo the roof in two years," warned Bruno Marty. It also promises to further transform a rapidly changing city center. "We're adapting the city to a new population and responding to a need," assures the mayor, convinced that this point has attracted the attention of these investors. An interest that could lead to other concrete results: "They're currently prospecting everywhere in La Réole."