WESTGATE Hall will be demolished as part of the council’s final budget for 2010/2011, to which Councilor Alex Perkins has responded: “This council know the price of everything and the value of nothing.”
The hall, which is tucked behind the site of the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury’s city centre, is intended to become additional parking spaces for the new theatre, with no plans to replace the venue. The venue has been costing the council at least £100,000 per year to subsides it’s running costs.
Westgate Hall currently hosts numerous events, including weekly salsa classes and the closure will mean that the salsa group, Salsa-Asi!, which currently attracts over a hundred people, will essentially close down as Bob Long, 60, its founder and a solicitor, explains: “There is no similar facility within Canterbury and few throughout the whole south of England. We have developed a strong, nationwide reputation and our party nights are a major attraction. Canterbury should be building on this, not destroying it”.
Councilor Alex Perkins is also apposed to the plans and said: “They are saying that there are no other choices but there are always choices. Only 4% of the councils budget was consulted upon, contained within the other 96% are a lot of things that could have been cut, instead of the Westgate Hall.”
Some locals understand the benefits those extra parking spaces will bring. Rachel Lythe, 36, of Wincheap says: “I use the park and ride as parking in the city centre is a nightmare. It also costs a fortune. There can never be too much parking in a city centre, as there never seems to be enough.”
The long term plan is for the area to become a potential site for re-development, including more shops or housing which councillor Perkins claims: “none of which we need. We have plenty of those already.”
Canterbury resident, Steve Wills, 42, said: “I am devastated. They are removing a community facility and a sense of community with it.”
Westgate hall is also a venue for indoor markets, along with the blood service where the hall provides a place where the public can go to donate blood. “People come here for a variety of different reasons, including to get fit and lose weight, something being strongly promoted by the Government and NHS,” the solicitor adds.
Canterbury City Council have stated that the hall is no longer fit for purpose and would need £450,000 spent on it to bring it up to date. The council issued a statement saying: “It is no exaggeration to say this has been the toughest budget ever. The council will take the action required to ensure it remains financially sound during the difficult times ahead.
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