Perth businessman John Bryden has launched a fresh bid to save Perth City Hall.
He has approached Perth and Kinross Council and Historic Environment Scotland to stress his offer to buy the long-vacant B-listed building is still on the table.
In a statement of intent Mr Bryden has also prepared “detailed plans and a professionally validated business plan” which require no public funding.
The managing director of Centreglobal, whose various city centre business interests include That Bar, The Loft and The Tavern, has been encouraged by confirmation that the local authority is preparing a further report examining “all options” for the Edwardian era hall.
This was prompted when a closed doors meeting in February saw councillors reject preferred bidder Perth Market Place Ltd’s plans, maintaining the applicant had not shown how the venture would be properly funded.
In January last year, Mr Bryden produced a brochure mapping out his plans to purchase and adapt the building for all manner of events, ranging from weddings to live performances and sports events and community use, with the Lesser City Hall being converted into student accommodation.
At that stage, his blueprint was dismissed out of hand by the council because they were not prepared to sell.
But yesterday Mr Bryden revealed: “I have detailed plans drawn up and funding in place to carry out the project outlined to every councillor in the brochure I sent to them last January.
“At that time, my bid was returned without being looked at because I wanted to buy rather than lease the building.
“However, Historic Environment Scotland have guidelines which require a listed building like this to be offered for sale before demolition can be considered. Not once since the building was closed has the council allowed that option.
“The council have been advised by their officers that a long lease is as good as an outright sale but that is simply incorrect for two reasons: first, most investors require title to the property as security for loans etc and, second, ownership is the only way to benefit from capital appreciation in a successful project.
“A third reason in this case is that the council have shown such unwavering determination to demolish the building that their future cooperation under a lease might be unreliable.”
Mr Bryden has told David Littlejohn, the council’s head of planning and regeneration, that he “shares the belief of most Perth people that this important listed building be retained.
A spokesperson for Perth and Kinross Council said: “Perth City Hall is not currently on the market. Negotiations for the long-term lease of the building were suspended in February on the basis that the preferred bidder had not fully satisfied pre-conditions of the lease within the timescales set.
“The position at the moment is that councillors have instructed the depute chief executive (sustainability, strategic and entrepreneurial development) to explore all options available to council in respect of our use of this site and to bring forward a report to the next council meeting.”