Campaigners in a Moray town have moved one step closer to taking ownership of a historic landmark.
The Forres Area Community Trust (Fact) has been running the local town hall since July after the council decided to shut facilities across the region.
Yesterday the authority agreed to sell the Victorian building – pending court approval as it is owned by the local common good fund – to the charity for £75,000 – a 50% discount on the market value.
Aaron McLean, chairman of the council’s policy and resources committee, said: “I hope that the rest of the process runs smoothly and that Fact can soon call themselves proud owners of Forres Town Hall.
“We have already seen a great improvement in the look and use of the building since they took over the tenancy and I’m sure we will see this continue once they have access to further funding.
“I’m certain they will provide a much improved facility for the benefit of residents for many more years to come.”
Forres Town Hall is a popular venue for events in the area, with its next vacant Saturday coffee morning slot not available until 2021.
Its revival under Fact’s management has included the return of Hogmanay celebrations for the first time since the 1960s and the opening of a small art gallery.
The group has already drawn up an ambitious £1.9 million vision to transform the hall with tiered seating, make it suitable for film screenings and create office space to rent.
Development manager Debbie Herron said: “This is a really positive step forward for us.
“We first moved into the building in 2017, but have been working on this since 2016.”
Council officer Andrew Gray explained that selling the hall to the charity at a discount represented better value than continuing to maintain it.
He said: “I don’t know how much the repair bills would be but they would run well into six figures.”
