Thomas Glen, Chief Executive of Perth and Kinross Council has rejected a petition to save Coupar Angus Town Hall. In a letter today to the editor of Coupar Angus News & Information, Mr Glen stated:
"In the case of the Town Hall, I am afraid the Council will not be in a position to re-open the building as it operated prior to closure in 2019. Before considering any option for disposal on the open market however, we are always committed to exploring any community interest in taking on ownership and management of the building."
The full text of Mr Glen's letter is shown below:
Dear Mr Gallagher
Coupar Angus Town Hall
I am writing further to your email of 15 December 2023 addressed to me and to the Leader of the Council and I apologise for the delay in responding.
You ask specifically about the future of the Town Hall and I appreciate this is a key priority in your view and others who signed the Town Hall petition. I should first clarify the position on repairs expenditure. The Council approved £200,000 for essential repairs in 2021/22 (principally the heating, windows and roof) to ensure the building remains in a stable condition and does not deteriorate further. The heating and roof works have been completed at a total cost of £116,000. A price was received for the window works which was considered too expensive at that time, although we have carried out repairs to make the windows wind and watertight.
Recently pressure on the Council’s buildings maintenance budgets has significantly increased. Escalating costs of building supplies and building work is a real challenge for us, in common with all local authorities, and in practical terms it means we must prioritise our spend on the key infrastructure (for example schools and local roads) which we must, by law, maintain.
As you know the Council has been carrying out some wider consultation with local people and groups in Coupar Angus about the future of the town centre and I understand you have contributed to this process. Together with the community we hope to have a final Town Centre Action Plan ready by the end of March. This will be based on the outcomes of the consultation, and discussions through the Eastern Perthshire Local Action Partnership and other groups about how the Action Plan will be delivered. Some actions will be for the Council or other public service bodies to lead. Others will be for community groups to lead, with support either from the Council or other sources such as PKAVS.
An important issue raised by several respondents to the consultation is the number of buildings in Coupar Angus available for communities to use. As you will know some of these buildings are not in good states of repair. Not all these buildings will be affordable in the future. Older buildings are not necessarily designed to be accessible and easy to use for today’s needs, and rising energy costs affect all of them. This will mean making choices in the future about which buildings, including the new Strathmore Hub, are best suited to deliver the activities and services which the local community wants to happen in the town.
In the case of the Town Hall, I am afraid the Council will not be in a position to re-open the building as it operated prior to closure in 2019. Before considering any option for disposal on the open market however, we are always committed to exploring any community interest in taking on ownership and management of the building. For your awareness, the Council will consider its capital budget for the next 5 years at its budget meeting on 1 March and as part of this will be asking officers to consider all assets within the development of a Corporate Assets Management Plan to be brought back to Council later this year. This plan will set out what assets we have, need and the implications for existing and potential new assets over the coming years. Where there is a need to disinvest in assets we shall work with communities to discuss and mitigate any impact as well as the potential for any community asset transfers to be developed. Fiona Robertson and David Stokoe in the Communities team are happy to discuss this with you further. There are examples elsewhere in Perth and Kinross where this has happened successfully, and there are some grant sources available to support such a community initiative.
Yours sincerely
Thomas Glen
Chief Executive
"In the case of the Town Hall, I am afraid the Council will not be in a position to re-open the building as it operated prior to closure in 2019. Before considering any option for disposal on the open market however, we are always committed to exploring any community interest in taking on ownership and management of the building."
The full text of Mr Glen's letter is shown below:
Dear Mr Gallagher
Coupar Angus Town Hall
I am writing further to your email of 15 December 2023 addressed to me and to the Leader of the Council and I apologise for the delay in responding.
You ask specifically about the future of the Town Hall and I appreciate this is a key priority in your view and others who signed the Town Hall petition. I should first clarify the position on repairs expenditure. The Council approved £200,000 for essential repairs in 2021/22 (principally the heating, windows and roof) to ensure the building remains in a stable condition and does not deteriorate further. The heating and roof works have been completed at a total cost of £116,000. A price was received for the window works which was considered too expensive at that time, although we have carried out repairs to make the windows wind and watertight.
Recently pressure on the Council’s buildings maintenance budgets has significantly increased. Escalating costs of building supplies and building work is a real challenge for us, in common with all local authorities, and in practical terms it means we must prioritise our spend on the key infrastructure (for example schools and local roads) which we must, by law, maintain.
As you know the Council has been carrying out some wider consultation with local people and groups in Coupar Angus about the future of the town centre and I understand you have contributed to this process. Together with the community we hope to have a final Town Centre Action Plan ready by the end of March. This will be based on the outcomes of the consultation, and discussions through the Eastern Perthshire Local Action Partnership and other groups about how the Action Plan will be delivered. Some actions will be for the Council or other public service bodies to lead. Others will be for community groups to lead, with support either from the Council or other sources such as PKAVS.
An important issue raised by several respondents to the consultation is the number of buildings in Coupar Angus available for communities to use. As you will know some of these buildings are not in good states of repair. Not all these buildings will be affordable in the future. Older buildings are not necessarily designed to be accessible and easy to use for today’s needs, and rising energy costs affect all of them. This will mean making choices in the future about which buildings, including the new Strathmore Hub, are best suited to deliver the activities and services which the local community wants to happen in the town.
In the case of the Town Hall, I am afraid the Council will not be in a position to re-open the building as it operated prior to closure in 2019. Before considering any option for disposal on the open market however, we are always committed to exploring any community interest in taking on ownership and management of the building. For your awareness, the Council will consider its capital budget for the next 5 years at its budget meeting on 1 March and as part of this will be asking officers to consider all assets within the development of a Corporate Assets Management Plan to be brought back to Council later this year. This plan will set out what assets we have, need and the implications for existing and potential new assets over the coming years. Where there is a need to disinvest in assets we shall work with communities to discuss and mitigate any impact as well as the potential for any community asset transfers to be developed. Fiona Robertson and David Stokoe in the Communities team are happy to discuss this with you further. There are examples elsewhere in Perth and Kinross where this has happened successfully, and there are some grant sources available to support such a community initiative.
Yours sincerely
Thomas Glen
Chief Executive
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