People's Trust may step in to save ailing Futurist

THE show could go on at Scarborough's ailing Futurist Theatre by placing the venue in the hands of a "People's Trust" who are to be given a shot at resurrecting the venue as a theatre.

After months of research, a panel of experts set up to consider the future of the theatre is recommending that the doors remain open for the next two years under the existing caretaker management.

Consultants have previously suggested it would be "commercial suicide" to keep the theatre, which is on a site that could be used for redevelopment.

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However, the move would give pro-theatre campaigner Patricia David a breathing space to develop her idea of transferring the ownership and running of the Futurist to a People's Trust.

Should she fail the council would retain the right to sell the site off for redevelopment.

She accepts the theatre would need some subsidy. But her aim is to follow the example of The Stockport Plaza which underwent a 3.2m restoration and refurbishment programme.

The Futurist Task Group visited Stockport as part of the review and was impressed. The Heritage Lottery Fund provided a grant of 1.9m, the North West Regional Development Fund provided 650k and Stockport Council 300k plus public donations.

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On this relative shoestring budget the premises, which were being used as a bingo hall, were then restored to a cinema and theatre run by volunteers.

During the Futurist consultations, the consultants had claimed retaining a theatre on site would be "commercial suicide" and a pipe dream that was standing in the way of a grander scheme to develop the wider area hinging on a casino.

However, Ms David says that this was to look at things purely through the eyes of property developers and the success caretaker manager Barrie Stead had enjoyed spoke for itself.

She added: "We have looked at the Stockport Plaza. They negotiated a deal with their council. It has parallels with the Futurist. It was built in 1930.

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"We spent a whole day with Stockport's financial director. They set up a charitable trust and the council donated the theatre. This was looked into by the audit commission, took place 10 years ago and is now a successful theatre which is dependent upon volunteers – dependent upon a one-off payment from the council."

The Futurist Task Group's recommendations will be considered by Scarborough Council's Corporate Strategy Overview and Scrutiny Committee at a special meeting on Friday.

The main recommendations include offering the supporters of the People's Trust option the opportunity to work up some detailed proposals for further consideration by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee about how a trust could be operated and funded. These would need to be submitted within 12 months.

In the meantime, it is recommended Mr Stead, who currently holds the lease for operating the theatre, should be given a two years extension to his agreement.

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Task group chairman David Jeffels said: "It was obvious from the representations made to the group by local residents in particular, that there is much affection for the Futurist Theatre, and that they would welcome a theatre on the site – either the refurbishment of the existing one or a new theatre incorporated in a new development of the entire site.

"However, presentations were also made by people in the theatre and entertainment world, and by development consultants, that the Futurist's role had declined since its hey-days.

"We also received financial reports indicating the considerable subsidy which could be needed from the borough council to support the redevelopment of the Futurist site."

However, evidence from property experts during the course of the review had clearly shown that it would not make sense to market the Futurist site until 2012.

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"So these recommendations are a sensible way forward, which allow any theatre trust proposals for running and funding the theatre to be explored in the meantime," he added.

"In tandem with this opportunity, the task group is recommending that the council develops contingency plans for marketing the site, should proposals for a theatre either not come forward or not prove realistic."

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