The wartime hall in Tealing could be given a new lease of life under community ownership.
Tealing Hall Management Committee is pursuing a community asset transfer in a step similar to a tenant buying their council house.
The hall’s fabric convener Graham Campbell said the purchase price would be reduced to reflect the length of tenancy, while ownership could bring a greater sense of pride in the property and open up more funding opportunities.
Tealing Hall was built by the Ministry of Defence as a gym and cinema for the airfield north of Dundee at the start of the Second World War.
When the RAF left the base in 1947, the community started using the premises and it became an asset for the village and surrounding area.
Today, it holds a range of activities for all age groups, including church services.
The hall’s management committee has spent more than £50,000 on maintenance and improvements in the last 21 years, but more now needs to be invested.
The hall’s lease from Angus Council expires at the end of March and the management committee believes it can be given a more viable future under community ownership through a community asset transfer.
Mr Campbell said: “The cost of ownership would be at a discount to true value, a bit like sitting tenants buying their own council house.
“Like prospective house buyers, we see the main benefits as greater pride in our hall and enthusiasm from the community to support the upkeep and make long-term improvements.
“We’ve carried out surveys and held a public meeting which showed the Tealing community strongly support the idea of us owning our own hall.
“We would also be able to approach funding bodies for grants which are available only to organisations which own their properties.
“Schemes like the refurbishment of our toilets would be very difficult to achieve under existing arrangements but there are organisations we could approach for grants if we were hall owners.”
The hall committee are producing a business case demonstrating their ability to manage the hall in a responsible and sustainable way, and they hope to have the transfer completed by April 2014 when the present lease with Angus Council expires.
One of the committee’s first projects is a makeover of waste ground to the rear of the hall, and a team of about 20 volunteers have been enlisted to help in the task.