Leave City Hall standing, says Labour candidate

Dec 16 2011 by Greg Christison, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

PERTH City Hall should be allowed to stand dormant for a further seven years, a campaigner insisted yesterday.

Budding local politician Andrew Dundas, who plans to stand as a Labour and Co-op party candidate for Almond and Earn in May’s local elections, has mooted the unusual suggestion – claiming an alternative use for the B-listed building should be sought when the economic situation improves.

Speaking to The PA yesterday, the former businessman said: “It has cost £90,000 to leave the building standing vacant for over six years, that’s an average of £15,000 per year.

“The building is perfectly sound, it’s got no cracks and it isn’t subsiding.

“The simple thing to do is seal it up and leave it for another six or seven years, it’s only going to cost us £15,000-a-year!

“As a former businessman, I don’t like to see people’s money being wasted on fruitless exercises, as has happened here.”

The Ross Avenue resident, who moved to the Fair City one year ago, also pointed out that public opinion is “irrelevant” in the final decision on the controversial Edwardian landmark’s future, which is to be taken by Historic Scotland next month.

He continued: “Scottish Heritage have one criteria and it’s nothing to do with popular opinion.

“It doesn’t come down to some kind of X-Factor or Strictly Come Dancing type of public vote.

“What people think is irrelevant. They [Scottish Heritage] have to decide if there is no viable alternative to demolition.”

And Mr Dundas, who has outlined his argument in a letter to Historic Scotland, reckons the City Hall, which was built in 1911, could prove to be a vital asset in years to come.

He added: “You couldn’t sell it for love nor money at this moment in time.

“But a viable alternative to demolition is simply to leave it be. Simply maintain the fabric until the property recession is over.

“Then look at more sensible re-development alternatives. When the property recession is over, we can see if a large building in the very centre of Perth might be attractive for, say, flats or office development.

“There's normally a strong demand for those sorts of developments in many towns. The building can be retained. It’s a no brainer.”

Last month, Perth and Kinross Council’s development control committee voted 7-3 in favour of demolishing the City Hall to create a new civic square – a project estimated to cost £4.4m.

However, due to the building’s historic nature, the Scottish government will make the final decision on its future, acting on the recommendation from Historic Scotland.

A spokesperson for PKC said yesterday: “We are obliged to maintain the City Hall as long as it is there.

“The building has been closed since 2005 and associated costs to the council in that time total £88,732.65.

“When the council carried out public consultation on the City Hall, 90% of those consulted were opposed to leaving the building as it was with no decision on its future.

“The council has made a unanimous decision regarding the City Hall, and submitted its case for demolishing the building to Historic Scotland, based on the economic benefits of a civic square.”

Campaigners critical of the decision to raze the building have spent months lobbying council members in an attempt to either save the building as a whole, or, alternatively, its facade.

A final decision is expected next month.