THE PUBLIC VISION “STILL SOUND”

25-01-2007

Consultants have told The Stirrer that the original vision behind the troubled Public Arts Centre in West Bromwich “is still sound” - even though Sandwell College has pulled out of discussions to lease an entire floor.

David Clarke of Birmingham-based consultants DCA has been working with Sandwell Council to carve out a future for the centre since it went into administration last year.

The College's decision not to re-locate there has been portrayed in the local media as a body blow, but Clarke was surprisingly upbeat about it today saying: “Everybody has been careful not to rely on deals until they've been done. We've always had other options.”

He wouldn't be drawn on what thoseoptions are, but hinted that it won't be too long before The Public finally opens its doors to, well, the public.

Of course, we've been here before - it was originally scheduled to open in 2005 and then again last summer, but stumbled into administration three months before the ribbon cutting, in March 2006.

This time, though, Clarke is confident that the building will finally be completed - and in line with it's £54 million budget. So will the knockers(and there have been so many of them in the local community and media) finally be silenced?

“My personal view is that people will judge it on what's on offer there. If people find that it's inspirational, useful and valuable I think over a short period of time the knocking will pass into history” he said.

“What we've seen is a great deal of positivity from the various partners, people like the Black Country Chamber and Regenco, and there's still a strong sense of support for the project through what has been a difficult time.”

Clarke acknowledged there would be difficulties in making a community arts centre work in such a traditional town, butinsisted that it would offer anew dimension to West Bromand Sandwell generally:

He said: “The original intentions behind the scheme are still sound, and we see the best way forward as being to complete and fit out the building and seek to realise that vision. The vision is sound”.

Are you looking forward to the opening of The Public? Or shoud Sandwell Council cuts its losses now? Leave a comment on our messageboard.