Town hall of Fontvieille, Municipal administration building in Fontvieille, France

The town hall of Fontvieille stands on the place de la Mairie in the centre of the village, in the Bouches-du-Rhône. The two-storey building has a pale limestone facade, a central entrance reached by a few steps and regularly spaced windows, with the council chamber and the registry office inside.

Fontvieille's town hall occupies a building erected in the 19th century, when the commune, then growing around its limestone quarries and the Alphonse Daudet connection, replaced older meeting places with a permanent municipal seat. It has since housed the council, the registry office and the mayor's services, and remains the seat of the commune's administration.

The mairie's salle du conseil hosts the municipal council's public sessions, and the building keeps the état civil registers in which births, marriages and deaths in Fontvieille are recorded. Residents come here for administrative papers and civil ceremonies. The facade carries the French motto "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité", as on other mairies.

The mairie stands on the main square of Fontvieille, in the heart of the village within reach of the shops and cafés. The entrance is at street level, and the building sits close to the parking areas at the edge of the centre. Services are handled on weekday mornings and afternoons, with a closure over the lunch hour, so check the posted hours before setting out.

The town hall stands on the site of the former communal building, and its facade carries the inscription of the French Republic's motto, a detail many passers-by miss while heading to the nearby market. Look for the carved stone lintel above the main entrance, which bears the date of the building's inauguration.