Management committee celebrates cash bonanza

A GRANT of over £300,000 will help give a new lease of life to an 18th century Mylor Bridge building which campaigners hope will once again become the centre of village life.

Five years of hard work by the Tremayne Community Hall management committee has finally resulted in a large Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £333,900 to help restore the grade two listed building to its former glory.

Tony Andrews, chairman of Mylor parish council said: “We are absolutely thrilled to bits at the news, after the committee has struggled for years to get funding.

“It will make a lot of difference to local people, it is the centre of village activities.”

Christopher Perkins, chairman of the Tremayne Hall management committee, said the lottery grant was the first step forward for the project in six years of funding activities and grant applications.

He added that it means the building, which is the largest hall in the village with a stage, can be transformed to its proper condition.

The whole project, which if successful would cost nearly £600,000, will include building modern toilets and a small separate hall, a study room for the local history society and its archive, and creating a foyer.

“It will mean that this is a major step forward in obtaining the rest of the money for the restoration of the whole site and providing disabled facilities and modern toilets,” said Mr Perkins.

Mike Marshman, involved in the project since it started, said the management committee had worked in partnership with the local history group to obtain the grant.

He added: “The heritage grant guarantees the grade two restoration so that we can approach other funding providers for the rest of the project.

“There is a great lack of funding from government sources, we have tried endlessly to get money.

“Cornwall Rural Community Council has been trying to help us get money but they have been unable to find any money from local authority sources.”

Mr Perkins said the local community had raised £15,000 towards the project, with a further £5,000 grant coming from the Mylor parish council.

The management committee expects the restoration work to start later in the year. They have also vowed to continue their fundraising work in order to complete the project.

By RICHARD GOEDEGEBUUR
(Falmouth Packet, 9 April 2005)