posted by Cptn
Torquay Town Hall could become an arts and community centre if suggestions from the consultation exercise are taken on board.
Torbay Council’s Civic and Community Hub Consultation on what to do with the town hall took place in Torquay to a grand total of three people last week, even though an even grander total of 12 were invited. (So even if everyone turned up it would have been more a conversation than consultation, and we’re guessing the Paignton and Brixham discussion were equally successful.)
Currently, the town hall is under-used and loses £1,000 a week. But the massive building could be put a myriad of uses – even combining office space with a productive community-based arts centre. The Exeter Phoenix is a perfect example of what could happen in Torquay, with a little political will, according to Dr Kevin Dixon, who was invited to the consultation.
The Exeter Phoenix manages to work both as a commercial entity as well as a resource for the community while providing support and a focus for the region’s creative industry.
Dr Dixon has already emailed the Torbay Council with plans outlining the concept and viability of a community arts centre.
“The town hall is a massive building and could have a number of uses. It’s Listed so can’t be demolished, but internal conversion is possible,” said Dr Dixon.
The only obstacle could be Torbay council’s drive to cut overheads by closing council offices throughout the Bay, including Oldway Mansion, and concentrating its staff in Torquay. Which looks likely to centre on the town hall. The fear is that community space, and the ongoing benefits it would provide, at the town hall would be lost.
“I’ve emailed the council with a few ideas – we could retain some of the town hall as an arts and community centre,” said Dr Dixon.
“It’s about time we had some kind of cultural centre in Torquay and this may be the only opportunity we will have in the near future.”
Comment below. And download a copy of Dr Dixon’s suggestions of what to do with Torquay Town Hall.
• Should the Bay have an arts centre, or should it remain a cultural wasteland?
• Is the consultation exercise a smokescreen to a foregone conclusion?
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Hi PRSD,
Who organised the consultation?
This sounds like a wind up.
Mark
Hi Mark,
I received a phone call from Torbay Council on – I believe – November 27th asking whether I would be interested in attending a Consultation about the Civic Hub. A few years ago I put my name down saying I was willing to comment on issues to do with the Bay, so I was on a list of interested people.
The Meeting was held at 5.30 on Monday December 1st in the Town Hall. According to the Council Officers present, 12 people had been invited, but only 3 of us attended. Apparently, two other meetings had been held in Paignton & Brixham.
The meeting lasted less than an hour, and the day after I sent an email with some suggestions. This is the email that the PRSD published. I haven’t, so far, received a reply from the Council.
I’m not a member of any particular interested organisation, just an individual concerned about our community. My worry was that a decision would be taken about the future of a major community asset without local people being fully consulted. Therefore, I let the PRSD folks know, due to their involvement in the Arts and because an Arts/Community/Cultural Centre may be a viable use for the building – or at least part of it. I know that a few years ago there was a Torquay group campaigning for an Arts Centre – they held exhibitions in the Spanish Barn – and they may well be interested in being consulted.
The Council hasn’t said that the Town Hall will be converted into office accommodation, but it’s well known that they are selling up all over the Bay and are moving around a 1,000 staff into the Castle Circus ‘Hub’. I just put two and two together.
All I’m really aiming for is a true consultation of all parties that may have alternative uses for the Town Hall, before any ‘fait accompli’ may take place. I guess I’ve done my bit, and would encourage others – if they want to – to publicise and campaign on this opportunity while there is still time,
Kevin
A member of the Torbay Council team running the Civic & Community Hub project got in touch with the People’s Republic of South Devon, saying:
“We have so far held three focus groups, in Brixham, Paignton and Torquay, which were unfortunately not well attended but generated some very good ideas.
“We are now consulting with equalities groups which are already in place in Torbay to discuss more specific issues affecting the various groups and to generate more ideas. This is happening throughout December. This is part of our preliminary consultation to provide suggestions which can be incorporated into a design brief.
“Following this exercise, we will be conducting a full Baywide consultation exercise on various ideas for use of the Assembly Hall in February 2009, which will then give the wider community the chance to have their say. Following this a planning application will be made later in the year after results of the full consultation have been incorporated.
“More information will likely be made available after we have finished the preliminary consultation exercise.”
If you want to take part, send your questions/ideas to project.management@torbay.gov.uk
Well done, PRSD!
I don’t remember this being said at the meeting I attended, but further consultation is to be welcomed.
Let’s spread the word…
To get the debate going about the future use of the Town Hall, I’ve posted a page on the Herald Express Forum site: “What can we do with Torquay Town Hall?”
See: http://www.thisissouthdevon.co.uk
The link to the Forum is at the top of the page.
Hello!!
Who is Dr Dixon and how do we contact him, any ideas?
The DMC
We got this message from sculptor Peter Stride:
Thank you for the Town Hall info. I knew nothing about it, where was it advertised ?
For several years I have put to the Council that a purpose built Art / Activity centre could be built in place of the Council owned Broadsands café, the lease has expired, there are 1550 car parking spaces, 2/3 of which are unused. Nowhere in Torbay has such accessible parking and potential.
The Council could lease the whole of the car park and café to a developer and control the development by the lease conditions and planning controls.
The Mayor and councillors express interest then nothing happens.
Peter Stride
The Torbay Care Trust Community Fitness person got in touch to say:
I would suggest using the facility for dance sessions/groups. Workplace physcial activity options such as badminton, exercise to music, circuits, volleyball, and aerobics.
Art work with an Olympics theme could be created to inspire those and link with the activity theme.
Hi I’m Curt Hennells, I’m a dance artist living in Torquay,
I am planning a performance in torquay!
If the town hall (torbay council) are up for starting to use the town hall for the arts? Then I will investigate further.
But There is also the Foyer (old south devon college site) that has an “arts building” dance studio, cafe ect, that has never been used, this will be my first choice. keep me posted artists of torbay on curthennells@hotmail.com please see http://www.youtube.com/cashdance
Torbay is in desperate need of more cultural venues. Actually, Torbay is in desperate need of culture. Theatre is best represented, particularly by The Little Theatre and dedicated community groups, but even so the theatre venues that we already have are underused and under-supported (check out the Palace Theatre diary of events).
And where are the other arts? Why doesn’t Torbay have a thriving arts scene? It feels like it should do. The South Hams manages it rather better, there’s no reason why Torbay should be lacking in this area.
I would love to see a cross-discipline arts centre in a similar vein as the Exeter Phoenix… Somewhere in my town where I could enjoy a good local band, see a national or international musician, take in an exhibition, watch some stand up or contemporary dance, take a dance class… or just enjoy a relaxing drink in enjoyable and chilled out surroundings! Both the Phoenix in Exeter and Dartington Hall in Totnes do all of the above and more very well. They provide a cultural hub and focus for their areas, enjoyable and entertaining nights out, stimulating environments, something for young people to do that doesn’t automatically involve alcohol, and job opportunities. I have often wished for a place like this in Torquay! The Town Hall site would be perfect in many respects – it’s a lively building, the library is right next door, there’s parking nearby, a major bus stop outside and a town central location. It just needs the investment and the will to do it properly.
9. Curt Hennells | January 16th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
Hi I’m Curt Hennells, I’m a dance artist living in Torquay,
I am planning a performance in torquay!
If the town hall (torbay council) are up for starting to use the town hall for the arts? Then I will investigate further.
But There is also the Foyer (old south devon college site) that has an “arts building” dance studio, cafe ect, that has never been used, this will be my first choice. keep me posted artists of torbay on curthennells@hotmail.com please see http://www.youtube.com/cashdance
I am currently in the process of applying to Arts council england SW Dance in Devon and torbay council to make a full evening of contemporary dance at TORQUAY TOWN HALL this summer 09.
I have also created a facebook group called – HELP MAKE TORQUAY TOWN HALL A CULTURAL HUB!!!!!!!! which is growing in numbers please join.
Curt Hennells.
17th Feb 2009 – 18th Feb 2009 (2 days)
2 February 2009
For Immediate Release
Residents’ views sought on Community Hub plans
From a temporary Red Cross hospital during the World Wars to performances by The Who and David Bowie, the Assembly Hall on Lymington Road, Torquay really has seen it all over the last 100 years.
Now an upcoming consultation event is giving residents the opportunity to have their say on the future of the Assembly Hall as part of a bigger Community and Civic Hub project.
Torbay Council plans to refurbish the Torquay Town Hall site, Electric House and Tor Hill House into a Civic Hub with centralised services, a business centre and improved office accommodation, whilst the Assembly Hall would form the community part of the Hub.
Residents are being encouraged to come along to the following consultation dates to have their say on the future use of the Assembly Hall, which is currently underutilised:
In the Assembly Hall foyer on:
* Tuesday 17 February (10am – 7pm)
* Tuesday 24 February (10am – 7pm)
* Wednesday 18 February, consultation caravan, Union Street, Torquay – outside Primark (10am – 4pm)
The plans will also be available to view and comment on at Torquay Library from Monday 16 February until Friday 27 February inclusive.
The plans are also available to view on the council’s website at http://www.torbay.gov.uk/communityhub from Monday 16 February until Monday 9 March. There will also be a facility on the website for residents to submit their views and suggestions surrounding the Assembly Hall and Civic Hub project.
The Mayor of Torbay Nick Bye said: “The exciting proposals for a Civic and Community Hub form an important part of the Mayoral Vision and our overall plans to regenerate the upper town centre area.
“The project would provide huge benefits not only in terms of efficiency savings within the council, estimated at approximately £30million over 25 years, but would attract transport and public realm improvements as well as perhaps a supermarket, cafes and other mixed use developments.
“We will end up with a new building which is efficient and flexible, far more sustainable and fit for purpose. This is not about providing shiny new offces for the benefit of officers, it’s about saving costs and being able to provide the best possibe service to residents.
“Whilst the plans for the civic part of the scheme are progressing well, we are keen to ensure that the community element meets the needs of our residents and therefore want to gather their views on what they want in terms of facilities.
“The reality is that the Assembly Hall is not fulfilling its potential. It is a wonderful historic building, one of Torbay’s treasures which really deserves to get a new lease of life and I loook forward to seeing the ideas that are put forward.”
The resulting plans will still have to go through the planning process in March which will provide a further opportunity for people to have their say.