The Friends of the Victoria Hall (FoVH) has welcomed the news that a debate about the future of the Ealing Town Hall, including the large part of it owned by the community through the 1893 Victoria Hall Trust will take place.
At the meeting on 13 June 2023 a motion for debate will be moved by the Liberal Democrat opposition which will call for the cancellation of a 2016 scheme which would involve the loss of the Victoria Hall to become part of a luxury hotel.
The Liberal Democrat motion will also say that a new future scheme for the Hall should be community-led, rather than developer-led and that a genuinely independent Victoria Hall Trust, with the majority of members being non-councillors, should be set up to determine the future use of the Victoria Hall.
FoVH chair Roger Green said: “With rumours currently circulating that the council has parted company with its luxury hotel developer partner Mastcraft, FoVH hopes that this debate will shed some light on this sorry and expensive saga and pave the way for a properly inclusive solution that’s better for the people of our borough.”
He added: “If the council’s hotel partner has indeed pulled out, it should waste no time in creating a new, inclusive, community-led future for the Town Hall and the Victoria Hall, the only large indoor venue in Ealing that’s easily accessible from all parts of the Borough.”
Speaking to EALING.NEWS, Ealing Liberal Democrat spokesperson Councillor Jon Ball said: “The Labour administration must stop throwing good money after bad supporting this doomed scheme and cancel it now. My questioning forced them to reveal the fact that they have wasted nearly £3m on the scheme so far. It is outrageous that they are using such huge sums of council tax payers’ money to fight against local residents. Ealing needs a community-led use for the Victoria Hall and for the rest of our Town Hall.”
At its 23 April 2023 meeting, Labour-run Ealing Council revealed that it had spent nearly £3m since July 2016 in its plans to redevelop the Town Hall site.
The Mastcraft project has been in limbo since April 2021 when an appeal was lodged against a decision by the Charity Commission to support Ealing Council’s attempt to take over the property of the Victoria Hall Trust.
A three-day hearing of the appeal took place in February 2023 but the outcome is unknown, with the court still to announce its decision.
The council meeting takes place at 7pm on 13 June 2023 and can be attended in person or viewed online at: https://www.youtube.com/@EalingCouncil
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