Patience snaps over hall saga

FENCING being put up around the still unfinished Royton Assembly Hall earlier this month

Oldham Council says it is taking a tough stance on the Royton Assembly Hall saga and drawing up a timetable for the work to be finished.

Chief executive Charlie Parker is exasperated with the lack of progress by Whispers which bought the hall for £215,000, eight years ago.

After the latest council action he says the company has agreed to sign up to a legal deed of covenant, and a schedule of works and timetable for completion of the development.

In August last year the council said it was ready to take legal action if the long-overdue work was not carried out by December 1.

Attempts by Mr Parker to arrange a meeting with Whispers to resolve the matter were ignored.

Within days of the deadline passing the authority acted and finally got a meeting with Whispers on December 17.

The hall was originally supposed to be up and running as a restaurant, banqueting hall and conference centre by the end of 2004. The deadline was then extended to April, 2006, and now, nearly four years later, the structure is still half finished.

As well as agreeing to the new timetable, Whispers was issued with legal proceedings for breach of the hoarding licence for the public square, and the obstruction of Middleton Road.

Whispers is now carrying out these works, and has been ordered to undertake urgent repair works to water leaking on to Middleton Road and causing a potential danger to the public.

Whispers says it will comply with this notice and their proposals are expected soon.

Mr Parker said: “This saga has been going on for almost six years and that is far too long.

“The people of Royton have endured enough so we have decided to act as the situation needs to be brought to an urgent conclusion.

“Whispers has had plenty of opportunities to finish the work but has not done so. The council’s strong actions will ensure it is now forced to comply.

“The council is always sympathetic to local businesses, especially in the current financial climate, but this problem needs to be brought to an end.

“This firm stance sends out the message that the matter is an urgent priority.”