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Civic Trust members support outline proposals for Town Hall
(September 25, 2010)A
registered charity is definitely 'inspiring the future' of Warminster
as the town's Civic Trust gets a big 'thumbs-up' for their efforts - while
debates on the future of the Town Hall and the Assembly Hall rage on.
Three-quarters
of those who responded to a membership questionnaire are in favour of
of the community purchasing the Town Hall.
In
a report to their September executive meeting under the heading
'Inspiring the Future' an initial Warminster Journal advert shows real
public interest in advance of their meeting in October.
An
influential community activist, George Jolley, has been co-opted onto
the committee and open days saw the doors of the Town Hall open for
longer than originally planned.
"I
have now talked to scores of people who visited during the open days
and with just one exception all could not understand why the building
was not in use," says campaigner Paul Macdonald.
"I
was told that one visitor could 'feel the vibes' from the building. She
added that she could easily image the uses to which the building could
be put.
"Another said that the town hall should never have been sold off in the first place."
The one dissenter raised the issue of car parking.
"How
can this be an issue if it has been given planning permission for a
property speculator to use as a night club venue?" adds Paul.
Public Response
The Town Hall stands in a prominent position in the town centre and has
become the key talking point amongst the public as the town council
labour to find a solution to the problems dogging the Assembly Rooms.
"The
public response now makes me feel vindicated in making such a fuss
about this. They have seen the building inside that I remember.
"I
now urge our town councillors to submit a 'motion of confidence'
supporting the Civic Trust in their plans to take on the Town Hall,"
says former councillor Paul.
"It
would be what I would have done by now even if I accepted the negative
view that the current town council should not be involved. I now have
come to that view.
"Let
them instead pledge a little bit of pump-priming money towards the
initial costs that the Civic Trust will incur in taking this on.
"Let them join in the campaign that Steve and I launched nearly two years ago.
"Dare I say it? They may even save a bit of public face to save the public face of Warminster!"
*The
Civic Trust membership starts at free for students. Check out their new
look website for details and the chance to take part in a poll."