The Monxton and Amport Village Hall Committee (MAVH) once again seeks your help to ensure we have the best possible community asset well into the 21st century. We have been approached by many locals concerned about the lack of an appealing community meeting place now that the Black Swan has been sold to a local property developer.
Three years ago we canvassed villagers as to what you might want from a village hall. The outcome of this was planning permission to renovate the current hall (16/01869/FULLN). To finance this, you have supported fundraising events and our project fund stands around £35,000. Build costs for this renovation are estimated to be in the region of £350,000 with eligible grant funding around £200,000-250,000 and the hall would be closed for 4-6 months during renovations. Another option might be to build a new, purpose-built hall on the current site.
The sale of the Black Swan pub (which included the car park and village green) has presented us with a unique opportunity. Following initial discussions with the new owners and TVBC, there exists a potential option to build a purpose-built village hall/community hub at the rear of the existing car park (on the scrub land where the electricity sub-station is currently sited) in conjunction with two small roadside cottages; the initial site suggestion was for a small housing development. Build costs for a new community hub are estimated to be in the region of £400,000 (including fit-out) with eligible grant funding around £250,000-300,000; new builds such as this attract additional grants as part of TVBC’s drive to create community assets fit for the future. The current hall would remain open until the new build was completed.
Please remember that if we do not take this opportunity the car park will be lost forever as it will become a site for 2-5 houses, according to the current owner. If we do move the building to the new location then the current village hall site will become a small 3-4 bed house of appropriate village design, fitting in with the vernacular.
In order to determine the best course of action, we invite you to have your say by responding to the short survey that was emailed to all residents on 10 July (download a PDF copy here – Survey 2018). (Survey closes on 16 October 2018)All responses will be treated in confidence and used to inform the decision-making process. Please return hard copies to Penny Kitson at Sherborne Lodge, Furzedown Lane, Amport or email monxtonmatters@gmail.com
Monxton Matters (https://monxton.org.uk/) and The Amport Village and Parish websites (http://amportvillage.co.uk/) will be the primary interfaces to keep you informed of developments and we will be holding open days at the Village Hall:
With regard to the future of the Hall it is very important that the residents of both Monxton and Amport and the two Parish Councils are consulted. It was becoming obvious 5 years ago that the Hall was not being used enough to make it viable that is why I got Amport and Monxton Parish Councils to agree to the Hall being renamed Monxton and Amport Village Hall.
Both villages need a vibrant Hall to bring both communities together.
The closure of the Black Swan means that more Monxton villagers are now using the Hawk as their local and it would be great if more Amport villagers became involved it the running and maintenance of the Hall.
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There is a lot of really good information on this page but it would be really useful to see an impression in plan view, of how the new hall would fit into the car park along with 2 dwellings and a car park. There are lots of people who cannot see how this would work in terms of space, so I think an example with dimensions would be really helpful.
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Thanks Neil. I have been in touch with the site owner to provide this. Thanks, Sarah
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