Date set for council to take back historic Torquay Pavilion

Campaigners blast 'hideous mess' of historic building lease

Campaigners fighting to save a building described as Torquay’s ‘jewel in the crown’ today welcomed news that Torbay Council has set a date for resuming control of it.

In response to a question from Paul Fraser of the Save Torquay Pavilion group, the council revealed that it will take back the lease of the historic waterfront building from tenants MDL Marinas in September.

After that it will begin a long-term project to find ways of restoring the building.

The pressure group says it remains sceptical, having been told a deal was already signed back in December, but at least a specific date for action has been announced.

“We will hold the council thoroughly to account,” said Mr Fraser after his question to a full meeting of the council.

The Pavilion first opened in 1912, and became an ice rink and later a shopping complex after the curtain came down on its use as a theatre and concert hall in the 1970s.

It has been falling into disrepair since it became vacant in 2013. The lease held by Southampton-based MDL Marinas was designed to run until 2084, but the council and MDL have been unable to agree on who should pay for repairs, leading to what council officers describe as a ‘stalemate’.

No future use has yet been specified for the Pavilion, but the council has previously considered  culture, food and drink, heritage and leisure uses. An ambitious scheme which would have seen the Pavilion becoming the ‘front of house’ for a giant new hotel was rejected after years of wrangling.

In recent months it has been targeted by vandals who have smashed windows and broken in, causing damage inside. 

Mr Fraser said there had been ‘years of dither’ around the ownership of the Pavilion, during which it had deteriorated.

“In 2013 experts recommended taking immediate action to stop water ingress harming the building,” he said. “Eleven years later, after millions of pounds of profound, preventable damage, the failure to act on those recommendations continues. It’s quite the scandal.”

He said the ownership of the Pavilion had become a ‘hideous mess’. Last December councillors announced that a £10 million deal had been signed to restore the building.

“That wasn’t good news,” said Mr Fraser. “It wasn’t true.

“Nobody should have celebrated before the victory, much less misled the public.

“We’re told the listed Pavilion, the jewel-in-the-crown at the heart of Torquay, is a priority. I wish I lived in the parallel universe where that was true.

“We’re tired of meaningless platitudes. We want answers, accountability, and action.”

In response, deputy council leader Chris Lewis (Con, Preston) apologised for the delays, but said he had more good news. The council and MDL had agreed that the lease would be surrendered on 30 September.

He went on: “It has taken longer than we anticipated, but we are still committed to finding a solution for the Pavilion, and getting it back to its former glory.

“From 30 September onwards we can get on with it.”

And, he said, the council would be monitoring security around the Pavilion to stop any more vandal damage.

“If it’s to become our building in September we don’t want it to deteriorate any more,” he said.