Former staff members of Falmouth's Princess Pavilion are behind a potential takeover of the building to be run by the community.
The pavilion, its restaurant and adjoining Gyllyngdune Gardens have been shut since the start of lockdown and did not reopen along with many other hospitality businesses at the start of July.
Last Wednesday GLL, the company that manages the facilities on behalf of owners Cornwall Council, confirmed that they would remain closed "until it becomes viable to re-open the theatre and restaurant" - something that is unlikely to happen until next spring.
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Now Hayley May, general manager of the pavilion until last week, when all staff were told that they had been made redundant, is leading a campaign to reopen it sooner if an agreement can be reached.
She has set up a Friends of the Princess Pavilion group, with a view to gathering interest into a possible community takeover of the site.
Already, more than 1,400 people have signed up to the group on Facebook and an online meeting is due to be held on Tuesday evening for anyone with the interest and specific skills to take the project forward.
Hayley said: "My whole team are out of jobs, and this venue will be allowed to sit empty until someone does something about it.
"There is a possibility that the Pavilion can be taken over, and re-opened, by a community group, if there is sufficient interest in doing so."
While still only an idea the moment, she hopes to look into the possibility of taking over the lease from GLL.
Hayley added: "The Princess Pavilion is an historic venue, and one of the only mid-sized music venues in Cornwall.
"Over the years thousands of visitors have seen live bands, comedians and theatre, held weddings, birthdays and celebrations and enjoyed the gardens. The Pavilion is much more than just a venue, it really is a part of life in Falmouth.
"Rather than allowing the building to sit empty, I believe that the community could take over the management of the Pavilion and make it a great community asset again."
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She has put together a questionnaire with a view to gaining a better idea of what level of support there is for such a takeover, plus what people would like to see take place at the building in the future.
The survey can be downloaded via the Friends of Princess Pavilion Facebook page and returned completed to princesspavilionfalmouth@gmail.com by October 16.
Hayley is also looking into whether support can be offered by The Plunkett Foundation, which helps community groups to take over local pubs and other community buildings with advice and potentially funding.
Other ways of raising money include community shares and fundraising.
GLL said last week regarding the pavilion and Cornwall's leisure centres it manages: "Covid-19 restrictions mean having to operate in a different way and that does sadly mean losing some local jobs in the short term.
"As a social enterprise and not-for-profit organisation, GLL has done everything possible to support colleagues throughout the pandemic but, as the job retention scheme draws to a close at the end of October and market conditions remain challenging, we are having to re-shape the business in order to ensure its future viability."
In a statement this week, GLL and Cornwall Council said: “We can confirm that the Princess Pavilion in Falmouth will remain closed until it becomes viable to re-open the theatre and restaurant. This is likely to be next spring.
"We fully understand how important the venue is to the local community and can confirm we are actively looking at every option to secure its long-term future.”
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