Talks over a deal to reopen Woodside Halls and allow community groups to return are set to be approved.
Glasgow councillors have been recommended to back negotiations with Community Central Hall (CCH) over a lease for the Glenfarg Street venue at a meeting on Thursday.
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They could also agree to enter talks with St Paul’s Youth Forum over the Molendinar Community Centre.
The two proposals are being progressed under the People Make Glasgow Communities programme, a council scheme which gives the public, including community groups and third sector bodies, a chance to have “greater involvement” in running venues.
Woodside Halls, built in 1925 and currently leased by Glasgow Life, which runs culture and leisure services for the council, has been closed since the beginning of the covid pandemic.
Council officials have reported the hall “remains closed whilst Glasgow Life is reviewing any potential options to re-establish service provision at this venue”.
Prior to the closure, the hall was available for hire for meetings, small conferences, classes and clubs as well as a venue for parties, dances and weddings.
CCH, a community development trust, operates in the Woodside, Hillhead and Maryhill areas of the city and has run Maryhill Hall, on Maryhill Road, for over 45 years.
Maryhill Hall has welcomed some former users of Woodside Halls, but these groups would rather return to their former home.
A council report added: “In recent years, Maryhill Central Hall has been operating close to capacity some evenings and CCH is currently unable to satisfy demand for community bookings.
“It is therefore CCH’s intention that the [Woodside] Hall will be used to extend the provision of these existing services but creating a clear brand identity for the Hall.”
The report claimed CCH, which employs over 60 staff and supports more than 75,000 people, believes having both buildings would “have the potential to create a delivery point for cultural activities on a scale not currently possible”.
Built in 2006, the Molendinar Community Centre, on Royston Road, has also been closed since the beginning of the pandemic.
It is currently leased by Glasgow Life and includes a sports hall, dance studio, meeting room, gym, IT suite and community cafe.
“Prior to its closure in 2020, the community centre offered IT, sport and exercises facilities to the community, as well as rooms for hire for meetings, classes and clubs,” officials said in a report to councillors.
St Paul’s Youth Forum, established in 2011, aims to help young people in the city, with a focus on the parish of St Paul’s Church, and to “alleviate the worst effects of poverty through the provision of activities and resources free to the community of Blackhill/Provanmill and beyond”.
The charity, managed by a board of trustees, considers Molendinar to be a “suitable venue from which to deliver its core services and to expand”, the council report added.
