Update on the Drill Hall
We started 2020 with the main priority being to secure the funding towards the feasibility of the Drill Hall as a Community Hub for Thurso. A wee bug got in the way! Ok, so it isn’t a wee bug but a Community Hub is our future so we would rather not use the ‘C’ word in this Blog, this is looking forward. It took us to the end of 2020 to get all of the funding lined up but we are finally here!
We learned in December we had secured funding from the Scottish Land Fund. This was a very important piece of the jigsaw as securing Stage One of the Scottish Land Fund means that we can if the feasibility proves to be successful enter a submission to Stage Two for the eventual purchase of the building. We are a long way from there though!
The funding we have secured so far from Scottish Land Fund, Architectural Heritage Fund, Your Cash Your Caithness and fundraising we did ourselves, so through you guys - a coffee morning held at the beginning of 2020 have all contributed to getting us to this point.
So what is this point? We will now start working with our Professional Team led by Architects HRI Munro to find out what the possibilities are for the building. The first part of that is a structural survey and intensive look at the fabric of the building to see if it is suitable for any form of development. We’re being very pragmatic here, it is a very old building and hasn’t been much of a fixer upper to date so if its too far gone we need to come up with a Plan B. If its not we will continue with the feasibility working with that team and working with all of you. So expect towards the end of February going on towards March to see some community consultation taking place so we can get your views on the building and what you want to see in a Community Hub. Of course that depends on the building being suitable for development…
What if its not? What is Plan B? The simple answer to that is we don’t know yet, but there will be one. While the events of 2020 put a fly in the ointment of securing this initial funding, the events of 2020 also evidenced how much in dire need we are of a Community Hub. Through community support we have seen how isolated people in our community feel and many were experiencing this prior to 2020. We need a building so we can develop ranges of activities, events and services which provide assistance to people in the community and develop community connections. Delivering the services we have done via community support while we have coped as an organisation through the grateful use of Thurso Youth Club is not ideal and doesn’t give us room to grow. All of the services from wellbeing to meals we would want to deliver permanently but in person rather than virtually and the Youth Club wants to desperately get back to being over run with kids as it should be so we need a home. So if a Plan B needs to be found, just as we managed to secure the funding through the most challenging year we have experienced, we will find a Plan B.
In the meantime, we’ll be documenting the progress throughout so watch this space for further details and if and when we get there a chance to share your views