Community group to take over running of Invergordon Town Hall

Highland councillors have approved plans for a community group to take over the running of a historic public building in Invergordon.

Black Isle and Easter Ross area committee agreed that Invergordon Town Hall should be leased to Invergordon Development Trust for 99 years at a cost of £1 a year.

The trust plans to restore the underused and deteriorating Victorian building into a "vibrant, multipurpose civic hub" featuring a cafe, exhibition space and community venue.

It is estimated restoration work could cost about £2m.

The B-listed building, which dates back to 1871, has previously been used as a cinema, bingo hall and arts centre.

Highland Council has been considering the future of the town hall for about a decade amid concern about low usage and the need for substantial refurbishment.

In 2021 it was decided the building, which is owned by the Invergordon Common Good Fund, should be put up for sale on the open market.

But many local residents were worried it could be bought be a private developer.

Donna Smith, chair of Invergordon Development Trust, said the prospect of losing the building sat uncomfortably with a lot of people in the town.

She said: "It's such a prominent feature of Invergordon High Street. Many of us, including myself, remember that back in its heyday it was really a social hub.

"It used to function as a cinema. I saw my first film there - the Jungle Book - when I was about five with my Dad."

"The town doesn't really have another space quite like that."

Smith added: "We took up the mantel of trying to save it and what we want to do is refurbish it back to something that the town can be really proud of and that everyone can use as a civic space."

The trust said it wanted the building to be a multi-functional space, which would include a cafe.

The hall's stage would be kept so that concerts and shows could be held, but retractable seating would allow for events such as parties, weddings or ceilidhs for cruise ship passengers visiting Invergordon.

The building would be run as a social enterprise with all profits being put back into the running of the facility.

Black Isle and Easter Ross area committee chair, councillor Lyndsey Johnston, said the community asset transfer marked an "exciting new chapter for Invergordon".

She said: "Transferring this historic property to the Invergordon Development Trust unlocks its vast potential as a multipurpose civic hub, generating far greater social, economic, and wellbeing benefits for the town than a standard commercial lease."