Work to turn old mart into community hub to start
GoogleWork to turn a Victorian auction mart into a community space for a town is to begin in the new year.
The disused mart on Victoria Road in Ulverston, in Cumbria, is being refurbished after the project received funding from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in August.
It will become a new home for the Ulverston Food Project but will also include a hub for different services and activities, called The Spot.
Zoe Mander, of The Old Mart Group CIC, said the area "desperately" needed new spaces because it was "losing venues all over town".
"The mart's a great town centre building right next to our bus stops and a place that's served as a hub for Ulverston for many years," she said.
"GSK's funding gives us the opportunity to look after this landmark Victorian building and give it a new lease of life, serving Ulverston again as a place to meet, make and be... and with modern comforts this time like insulation and heating."
Craig & Meyer ArchitectsPharmaceutical giant GSK donated £2m, split between the community space and the organisation which runs the town's Ford Park, after it closed its factory in the town in June.
Refurbishment work on the mart will begin in January and will involve the removal of its industrial roof and the installation of insulation and rooflights.
A planning application has been submitted to Westmorland and Furness Council to cover the full refurbishment, which will see a hall, classroom, meeting rooms and facilities for Citizens Advice built.
"These are facilities we hope will underpin a thriving hub," said Mrs Mander.
"A place that supports people in need, helps people be healthy and well and enables all the creative goings-on that make our festival town such a brilliant place in which to live and work."
