Across the country, architectural gems are being bought by developers to help cash-strapped local authorities, according to the Guardian.
The Guardian writes:
Councils up and down the country have been accused of ‘selling off the crown jewels’ in their efforts to cope with funding cuts and the impending loss of £18bn in central government grants.
Take just three examples. In Sheffield, the city council has agreed that a Chinese consortium can explore plans to lease the Grade II-listed central library and redevelop it into a five-star hotel, a move castigated as a ‘sad reflection’ on the city; in Hornsey, north London the disposal of the town hall has been dubbed a ‘shameful handover of the family silver’, and in Ealing, west London, the Labour-controlled council has been castigated for ‘betraying the borough’ by disposing of its ‘crown jewels’, such as allowing the redevelopment of the Grade II-listed town hall into a hotel.
In a letter to the Sheffield Star, comedian, writer and presenter Michael Palin, who was born in the city, wrote: ‘The Sheffield central library embodies the very best aspects of civic pride. It is a fine building, built to give education and literacy a prominent place at the very heart of the city. That a building, seeking to improve the lot of all Sheffielders, should end up as a hotel for the rich and privileged seems to be a sad reflection on how little the city cares for its public service legacy.’
Supporters of the scheme argue that while the city would have to move the library elsewhere, it would gain £1m in annual revenue from leasing the building and would be free of the £30m repair bill at a time when the Labour-controlled council is facing unprecedented financial pressures – since 2010, the council has had £352m cut from its budget and is set to lose a further £116m by 2021.
