Demolition work at the rear of a former park lodge Falmouth

The extension at the rear of Kimberley Park Lodge, originally built in the 1970s, was beyond repair and is being completely demolished and replaced with a wooden slat fronted structure to house the radio studio.

The lodge will be turned into a cafe and radio studios with outdoor seating areas (Image: File)

The original lodge gifted to the people of Falmouth by Lord Kimberley in 1877 will remain and be converted to a community café with a seating area outside.

The radio studios will be used by local community radio station Source FM to broadcast its programmes as well as providing workshops for the local community and enable it to be closer to the Park Live events which are held in the park every year when we are not in lockdown.

The original building will be turned into a cafe (Image: Supplied)

The communal radio station will be in the rear facing the outdoor seating area.

Two small sheds to the rear of the building are being torn down and a small outbuilding will be built next to the public toilets for use as a boiler engineering room.

Falmouth Town Council secured £500,000 of Shared Prosperity funding to transform Kimberley Park Lodge into a vibrant community and media hub with work originally set to start in April.

This initiative was made possible through the grant from Cornwall Council from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Good Growth Programme, which it manages and is funded by the then Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF).

The commemoration plaque will remain (Image: Supplied)

Cllr Jude Robinson, chair of the finance and general purposes committee which has overseen the project, told the Packet: “We are preserving the historic part of the Lodge and building a new extension to replace the one that subsided.

“Once up and running, it will be a fantastic base for SourceFm, a new resource for schools and local people and a cafe. Grant money is paying for the renovation and the tenants will pay ongoing costs so it will be sustainable for the future.”

Located at the lower entrance to Kimberley Park Gardens, Kimberley Park Lodge has been empty for several years. It once housed the family of the park keeper.

In early 2020, Falmouth Town Council, in partnership with local ratio station Source FM, embarked on a consultation to revitalise the building for the benefit of the community.

The outcome was a plan to transform the lodge into a vibrant community café, state-of-the-art recording studios, and versatile media training and rehearsal facility.

Computer generated image of what the building will eventually look like (Image: Supplied)

The aim of the Re-Source project is to breathe new life into the vacant lodge, whilst seeking to foster creativity, engagement, and skills development within the community.

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The project aims to provide a creative platform for individuals of all ages and backgrounds to connect, learn, and discover their creative potential.

Two of the studios will be tailored for both live and pre-recorded broadcasts, along with podcasting capabilities. In addition, a third flexible studio space will accommodate various community activities, including performance training, dance rehearsals, and music workshops.

It is hoped the community café will become a hub for people to meet, socialise and share ideas and stories.