A PROJECT granted millions in public money to transform a derelict seminary in Argyll into a public arts venue is under threat amid a financial crisis.
The £10 million restoration of St Peter's Seminary in Cardross by arts charity, NVA, was awarded more than £4.2m by Creative Scotland and the Heritage Lottery Fund in 2016, with a further £500,000 since earmarked for the project by HLF.
Work on the building was expected to begin later this year. However, the Herald understands that seven members of staff have now been told their posts will be axed in the coming weeks due to a lack of cash.
A spokeswoman for NVA said St Peter's "is an evolving project and we are currently in discussion with our funders".
She added: "The Directors and the Board of NVA are in constructive discussions with funders and partners about the St Peter’s project and NVA’s future role. It would not be helpful for staff or any of the parties concerned to say anything more at this stage."
A spokeswoman for Creative Scotland said: “We continue to work with NVA in relation to their capital plans for St Peter’s.”
Creative Scotland has committed £400,000 towards the capital project at St Peter's with additional instalments of £450,000 scheduled to be paid out between April 2015 until March 2018.
Lucy Casot, head of the Heritage Lottery Fund Scotland, said: “We can confirm that the Heritage Lottery Fund approved funding of £4.3million for St Peter’s Seminary. We will continue to work closely with the NVA as they take forward their plans for the project.”
Angus Farquhar, the creative director overseeing the overhaul of St Peter’s spearheading the efforts to resurrect it over the past decade.
Speaking earlier this month at an Architects' Journal event in Glasgow, Mr Farquhar told delegates that the revamp would "celebrate Andy and Isi’s legacy in a meaningful and authentic way" - referring to the original 1960s designers Isi Metzstein and Andy MacMillan - but hinted at the tight financial constraints facing the project.
He said: "When you are on a tight budget, what do you take out? Do you take out a bit that allows you to understand the architecture or do you lose a café? These are extremely painful decisions."
It also comes just weeks after the Grade A-listed seminary, famed for its Modernist architecture, opened its doors to the public over two days in September when free walking tours of the building were offered as part of the Scotland-wide 'Doors Open Day' festival.
It was the first time the space had been opened to the public since the award-winning Hinterland cultural initiative in March 2016.
The seminary first opened in 1966 as a college to train Catholic priests, but was only in use for 13 years. It was closed in 1979 by the Archdiocese of Glasgow due to a dwindling number of trainee priests, maintenance issues and financial pressures.
The building was used as a drug rehabilitation centre for four years in the 1980s, but was subsequently abandoned and fell into disrepair.
A previous bid to restore it as a health spa with a swimming pool was scrapped in the wake of the 2008 credit crunch when potential investment dried up.
NVA is working with architects McGinlay Bell and Avanti on the project which will partially restore the chapel as an indoor events space, while the main building will become an arts venue.
It was hoped the 105 acre site would attract 50,000 visitors a year.
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