The Kintyre Forum

Has anyone else heard that a number of events held each year in the Victoria Hall are not being held or being switched to other venues due to the hall charges?

Heard the Tartan Army dance is no longer in the Vic as they were asked for a ridiculous amount of money and both the local Highland Dancing School and Kintyre Schools Pipe Band are possibly holding their shows elsewhere too. Wouldn't it be better if it was used more at cheaper rates than not used at all?

Anytime I am in town it always seems to be closed......

I heard that they charged the recent under 18 dance organisers £600 for the hire of the hall.....
The last time I was at an event there, it was filthy, the toilets were broken and disgusting and not
fit for purpose at all.
Someone need to look at this and sort it out!!!

hoots the scoop wrote:Heard the Tartan Army dance is no longer in the Vic as they were asked for a ridiculous amount of money.

Not true - we decided to host a smaller event soley for the club although there was a considerable increase in the hall hire to what we have paid in previous years. Hire was going to be somewhere between £800 - £900.

To be honest I'm not against paying that kind of money when you are making money. We raised over £4,500 last year for charity so its not as if there is a problem covering costs. However, not everyone is in that boat and costs can be tight so there has to be some come and go. Apparently it is to come into line with the other halls in Argyll - eg The Queens in Dunoon and The Corran Halls in Oban. If the Council are doing that then they have to provide the same services which they are not.

I'm sure the Councillors will raise this as a concern if hall hires are going elsewhere...

the p wrote:

hoots the scoop wrote:Heard the Tartan Army dance is no longer in the Vic as they were asked for a ridiculous amount of money.

Not true - we decided to host a smaller event soley for the club although there was a considerable increase in the hall hire to what we have paid in previous years. Hire was going to be somewhere between £800 - £900.

The p - thanks for putting that one straight. I heard this was the reason and know the Pipe Band for example is thinking of going to the Grammar School. I also heard a murmer that somebody locally was looking to take a band to the town but the hire was crazy money???

However, is £800-£900 not over the top for what you get? As Kintyre 84 says their toilets are a disgrace - there aren't even any toilet seats in the ladies!

I think that you will find that more and more groups will start to use the Grammar School for functions, dances etc. mainly because its cheep, (approx. half the price of the Vic.) but the Grammar is not a dance hall, it is a school firstly.
It does not have the staff or equipment to cater for public access; it also has to be a secure building, because it contains pupil records and expensive equipment. You can’t have some drunk wondering about a school.
So far there is a Fusion’s Ceilidh on the 16th Nov. - the Highland Dancers Ceilidh on 18th Nov. - Footnotes Show on the 24th Nov and I believe Stars In Their Eyes on 2nd Dec.

Now I don’t know about the rest of you, but I would suspect that someone is trying to price the Vic. Out of business. The Victoria Hall costs a lot to run and it requires repairs to its structure, so to close it and build some nice flats behind the existing front, with their own private car parking behind would be worth a bomb.

Jan wrote:I think that you will find that more and more groups will start to use the Grammar School for functions, dances etc. mainly because its cheep, (approx. half the price of the Vic.) but the Grammar is not a dance hall, it is a school firstly.
It does not have the staff or equipment to cater for public access; it also has to be a secure building, because it contains pupil records and expensive equipment. You can’t have some drunk wondering about a school.
So far there is a Fusion’s Ceilidh on the 16th Nov. - the Highland Dancers Ceilidh on 18th Nov. - Footnotes Show on the 24th Nov and I believe Stars In Their Eyes on 2nd Dec.

Now I don’t know about the rest of you, but I would suspect that someone is trying to price the Vic. Out of business. The Victoria Hall costs a lot to run and it requires repairs to its structure, so to close it and build some nice flats behind the existing front, with their own private car parking behind would be worth a bomb.

Good points Jan and I agree with your sentiments about the use of the school hall. To a certain degree we are shooting ourselves in the foot by not using the Vic as it needs the money as you say. If we don't use it then it could be closed. However, there has to be a sensible approach to pricing events. I believe the Council want £1600 from the Kintyre Schools Pipe Band concerts in March. This seems steep when you consider the amount of money the Pipe Band have to raise to keep going.

Anyway, there is a meeting on Wednesday at Kilmory about this. Cllr Kelly asked for a meeting to discuss these issues. Anyone who has anything to add should contact Donald.

Av herd oan the grapevine thit thur cuid be an offur on the table for the Vic, we'il the grun aniwae.
Tis wantid fur storage for large items be'in shipp'd oot. Noo am naw shoor ift tis troo urr naw, but thit wuid exsplane thim pricin events so high. Mayby thits thur plan, high prices less usurs, less usurs meens cloas it doon.
Shoorly naw.

Thir grapevines are naw eyewas as accurate as ye might think.

Whoot a've got te sey on this is that the Vic has been a public facility te the toon for a loat langer than eether the Corran Haals in Oban or the Queens Haal in Dunoon an a think its ridiculous if we are to be deprived o' this facility because o' some hidden agenda. Are they on the line as well? Ah don't think so! I think oor haal goes back for mer than a century compared we their 30-40 years.

Pop, are yir sources good?

Bi the wey.

Ah'm answering here in the Camltun vernacular as ah'm replying tae Auld Pop an' a think he prefers this although it was hum that started the threed aboot the standard o' spellin' an’ grammar on the forum.

The other thing is that ah’v got owre a hunner posts noo an a think a can get aweh wi it.

Maybe no’.

no yes no yes no, it depends on the moment

This may be totally wrong -

but along with other things in the town, wasn't the Victoria Hall bequested to THE PEOPLE OF CAMPBELTOWN.

It may be run by Kilmory, but who OWNS it?

Is this an urban myth or was it actuually left to the people of the town in the dim and distant past.

Surfbored wrote:This may be totally wrong -

but along with other things in the town, wasn't the Victoria Hall bequested to THE PEOPLE OF CAMPBELTOWN.

It may be run by Kilmory, but who OWNS it?

Is this an urban myth or was it actuually left to the people of the town in the dim and distant past.

Yes - that came into my mind the other day too. There is a plaque above the doors as you enter the hall and it was definitely gifted to the town.

Aye same as thi liberary, but thi peeple oh the toon hae nae powur or sey oan thur propurty..
An Emdee ma soarsis urr pish cause tis jeest sumwan thit tawks tae me in ma sleep, so ah winna listen tae enithin I sey, cause I dinna.

Am hopin tae see the plans fur thi new whoot evir it ist thits gan ther thi nicht, but ah dunno ift ah'll rememer mush oh thim bae thi moarnin cause ma heeds westid at thi best oh times.

the p wrote:

hoots the scoop wrote:Heard the Tartan Army dance is no longer in the Vic as they were asked for a ridiculous amount of money.

Not true - we decided to host a smaller event soley for the club although there was a considerable increase in the hall hire to what we have paid in previous years. Hire was going to be somewhere between £800 - £900.

To be honest I'm not against paying that kind of money when you are making money. We raised over £4,500 last year for charity so its not as if there is a problem covering costs. However, not everyone is in that boat and costs can be tight so there has to be some come and go. Apparently it is to come into line with the other halls in Argyll - eg The Queens in Dunoon and The Corran Halls in Oban. If the Council are doing that then they have to provide the same services which they are not.

I'm sure the Councillors will raise this as a concern if hall hires are going elsewhere...

So who gets the mone then?

ionnsaigh wrote:

the p wrote:

hoots the scoop wrote:Heard the Tartan Army dance is no longer in the Vic as they were asked for a ridiculous amount of money.

Not true - we decided to host a smaller event soley for the club although there was a considerable increase in the hall hire to what we have paid in previous years. Hire was going to be somewhere between £800 - £900.

To be honest I'm not against paying that kind of money when you are making money. We raised over £4,500 last year for charity so its not as if there is a problem covering costs. However, not everyone is in that boat and costs can be tight so there has to be some come and go. Apparently it is to come into line with the other halls in Argyll - eg The Queens in Dunoon and The Corran Halls in Oban. If the Council are doing that then they have to provide the same services which they are not.

I'm sure the Councillors will raise this as a concern if hall hires are going elsewhere...

So who gets the mone then?

What money you on about?

Auld Pop wrote: ma soarsis urr pish cause tis jeest sumwan thit tawks tae me in ma sleep,

Ah thought that might bi the case.