Madam,

A much-used and well-regarded community asset is left to deteriorate to a dilapidated state by the county council until the refurbishment costs are assessed as being just under £1.7m. Sounds familiar.

This time it’s Theatr Felinfach which needs knocking down and rebuilding and a report has been placed before the Learning Communities Scrutiny Committee offering two options: a) completely refurbish the existing building, or b) make it part of the plans for the new Dyffryn Aeron area school, if given the go-ahead by the county council.

Either way, the Arts Council of Wales has agreed to contribute £575,000 whatever the decision is.

It is also good to note that the county council commissioned a proper report into refurbishment costs, rather than rely on off-the-cuff and on-the-hoof guesstimates.

It is interesting to see that option ‘a’ was costed, ‘b’ was not. Is there an issue of Arts Council funds being used to prop up the education budget?

There are concerns that closing of the theatre will deprive the community of a valuable resource.

The local councillor, Lynford Thomas, has suggested that the theatre remain open until the replacement is up and running. Yet Cllr Thomas is one of the councillors whose voting denied this option to Bodlondeb.

Art is very important for the community, it communicates ideas, informs and it involves people and two wrongs don’t make a right, but it will be interesting to see if the county council is prepared to put pantos before people.

Yours etc,

George Holloway, Rhoshendre, Waunfawr, Aberystwyth.

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