March businessman Rob Skoulding has pledged to keep the Town Hall running in just the same way as it has for the past 21 years once his purchase of the building is complete.
The Cambs Times revealed earlier this week that Mr Skoulding was in the process of purchasing the building from March Civic Trust - a move criticised by town councillor Martin Field, because of the "secretive way" it was being carried out.
The trust's chair, Clive Lemmon, had explained the sale was the only way to safeguard the future of the building for the people of March, as it needed £1,000s of repairs, particularly to its drains.
Now, Mr Skoulding has reinforced that message in a statement posted on the March Cambridgeshire Free Discussion Facebook page.
He said March Civic Trust could no longer maintain the landmark building because of “ongoing and mounting problems” with its structure and restrictions on grant funding.
He said the trust’s financial troubles were “in the main due to Labour restricting grant opportunities and the ongoing and mounting problems associated with its structure”, leaving trustees with no option but to put the Town Hall on the market.
Mr Skoulding said when he heard the building was for sale, he had become concerned the building could “fall into the wrong hands”, for example, being turned into flats, a house in multiple occupation or “a business that would not benefit the community”.
After discussions with the trust, he said he decided to come forward and offer to buy the building with the intention of fixing “extensive maintenance problems” and keeping it running “in just the same way that it has been for the last 21 years”.
The building was bought as a civic amenity for the people of March thanks to the generosity of Mr Skoulding's parents, Joan and the late Peter Skoulding, who donated the funds to buy the former court house when it was sold in 2000.
He said he wanted it to continue to run in line with what he said had been his late father’s wishes.
Mr Skoulding said his main concern was to protect the future of Twenty20 Productions, the children’s and youth project based at the Town Hall, and that, having seen first‑hand “the excellent work they do for the children of the town”, he wanted to ensure their future was “safe and secure”.
However, he warned that because of “extensive drainage works” that need to be carried out, some downstairs businesses would need to leave the building while the repairs take place, adding that they “have known about the problems for quite some time”.
He also stressed that buying a property from a charity such as March Civic Trust was “not an easy task”, saying the charity must commission extensive structural surveys to assess the scale of the problems, obtain professional valuations and undertake due diligence tests to satisfy the Charity Commission that the best possible value is being obtained.
“Only then,” he said, will the Charity Commission allow a sale to go ahead, adding that charities are not allowed to sell property below market value because of the regulations they must follow.
Mr Skoulding said this would be his “one and only comment” on the sale and that he hoped his statement would “clear up any concerns”, signing off simply: “Rob”.
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