Town Council

To Comment on this article Click Here

According to consultant Thor Dingham's final report, Southampton Town Hall is in very good shape given the building's age.

"As with any building over 100 years old, there are expected maintenance items that will need to be done, said Dingham, "but overall they are very minor.  The masonry in the building is exceptional." 

The interior, he pointed out, requires finishes to be updated but overall the auditorium is very serviceable.  "The stage floor however, is definitely beyond its life and the kitchen could be upgraded to allow for more event catering."

"One of the major problems, however," says Dingham, "is the fact that the washrooms are not fully accessible, and the elevator requires an operator."

Dingham set out three options for the Town Hall renovations and/or upgrades.

The first option is maintenance, restoration and accessibility.  "I recommend that automatic door openers be installed and the electrical mechanical will have to be upgraded in the next five years."  Among other minor upgrades, he also recommended that period signage be installed to recognize the building's heritage status.

A second option would be to install a full-sized elevator on the outside of the building that could be linked to the Southampton library adjacent to the Town Hall and to consider retractable seating in the auditorium.  "A lobby wall could also be built which would allow the heritage windows to once again be opened up and restored," suggested Dingham, "in addition to removing the existing ceiling."

The third option, is what Dingham, referred to as "Dream the Dream".  It would entail joining the Town Hall to the library which could then mean a sharing of operating costs.  It would also include theatrical support such as change rooms, accessible washrooms and the re-organization of the existing tenant space such as the Art Gallery."

Dingham also set out various costs that could be involved: 

• initial repair of brick work, plumbing and other minor upgrades    $ 49,000

• exterior period lighting over windows, accessible washrooms and general restoration  $467,000 - $856,000

• elevator addition and retractable seating $692,000 - $1million

• Dream the dream option $1 - $3 million

"I hope we follow through with some of this as there is a lot of interest in the Town Hall," said Councilor Diane Huber.   "There is so much interest in heritage items and there is so much potential for that entire corner of Southampton."

"I would be interested in turning that room (auditorium) into a functioning theatre but it would mean a lot of changes including window coverings for blacking out, lighting, change rooms and more before it could be a real theatre," said Deputy Mayor Luke Charbonneau.  "I want to see us come up with something that will see a greater use of the facility.  I would like to see us think about how we would like to use the facility and how the community would like to use it."

"We have had a lot of studies done but we have never had a plan where actual costs were broken down," said Vice-Deputy Mayor Doug Gowanlock.  "It will be up to Council to decide what it will be used for and how we'll pay for it."

For previous articles regarding the Town Hall:

Click here

Story of the Clock

Councilor Diane Huber

Scrolling stops when you move your mouse inside the scroll area.  You can click on the ads for more

Survey Participate in our latest Kincardine Times survey

Survey Participate in our latest Saugeen Times survey

Survey Participate in our latest Walkerton News survey

^{for world news, books, sports, movies ...}

Thursday, November 17, 2011