A Moray community has appealed to the local authority for a grant to help secure the future of a local landmark.
The committee behind Lossiemouth Town Hall is making plans to improve the venue amid fears that its income will drop should the town’s library relocate in the coming years.
At the moment, a biomass boiler at the hall provides heating for the library and the committee charges the council for the heating it provides.
But the book-lending service is expected to be transferred to the newly built Lossiemouth High School when it opens in 2020, leaving the hall with a gap in its finances.
The chairwoman of Lossiemouth Town Hall’s management committee, Catherine Wood, said a pledge of £5,000 would allow the group to purchase new furniture in an effort to attract more bookings.
She said: “There is a lot of talk about the library being moved to the new school when it is built, and we need to make sure we compensate for the shortfall that would leave us with.
“We managed to fundraise for a biomass boiler worth £150,000, which we use to supply the library with heating.
“We are looking at that part of our income drying up, and we want to make sure we can increase our bookings to make up for that.”
The group would use the £5,000 to buy new round tables and chairs to entice more people to hold weddings and dinner parties in the hall.
They believe the current “school canteen” style tables have deterred people from using the venue.
Mrs Wood added: “We want to make the place a bit more upmarket, and we think that will attract more bookings.”
The management committee has ploughed £750,000 into revamping the premises since it was granted control over it by Moray Council in 2006.
But members say that they would be unable to cover the £5,000 cost for the new furnishings themselves.
The group has asked Moray Council’s policy and resources committee to delve into a developer obligations fund, which has been paid into by housing developers across the region, to cover the expense.
Councillors are expected to make a decision on the appeal when they meet in Elgin today.
