The future of the White Elephant Enclosure will be discussed at the next Smalltown and Dullbridge (SaD) Town Council Full Council meeting on Monday, after it was confirmed that a letter from Padraig and Cheryl Irishh has been received.
The letter, sent on 20th January, reads “We write in connection to the White Elephant Enclosure which we understand through social media and direct community feedback is once again facing a challenging time.
As residents of Smalltown ourselves, we are very fond of the WEE and feel that in the right hands it could have a meaningful place in the heart of the community.
For this reason we would like to express our interest in taking on the WEE which we believe could benefit from our expertise.
We understand that this will not be an easy decision for the Mismanagement Committee to make but we would like to open dialogue to see if we can support the WEE to fulfill its true potential for the community of Smalltown and Dullbridge, rather than continuing to be a complete disaster which has already cost residents close to £1 million.”
The couple then detail their experience in taking on run down cinemas in Froom and Mineleg, as well as their success in reversing the fortunes of Smalltown’s own hugely successful Blitz Cinema.
The proposal suggests that SaD Town Council remain responsible for the external aspects of the building whilst the Blitz Cinema take on all of the internal aspects of running the WEE, which the couple would hope to “develop into a community focused ‘hub’, not only for live entertainment but for a whole range of complimentary community focused activities and events.”, something which the Town Council has been trying and failing to do for the last ten years.
The letter ends “The specific terms will need to be discussed and agreed, but we would be interested in starting dialogue along the above lines which we believe could relieve the Mismanagement Committee of the responsibilities and challenges of trying to run a business which they know nothing about, as well as benefit the public purse and provide a community asset which we could all be proud of.”
It is expected that SaD councillors will find the expression of interest interesting and will agree to set up a Working Party to think about the idea.
SomersetClive would recomend biting off Mr Irishh’s hand before he changes his mind.