A Dunoon employer has joined with the local community to support a campaign to prevent one of the Argyllshire town’s most iconic Victorian buildings from lapsing into dereliction.
Greg Girard, the Dunoon-born and raised MD of CX Services, is backing a crowdfunding bid to raise £60,000 to ease a shortfall in revenue which means the Scottish baronial Dunoon Burgh Hall may have to shut its doors to the public as soon as this summer.
Christina McKenzie, the newly elected chair of the Burgh Hall, said, “We’ve already begun work on a long-term strategy to rejuvenate every part of the building to make it better serve the local and wider community. We want the hall to become the beating heart of Dunoon and the wider Cowal Peninsula. We believe there can be a bright future ahead if we can navigate through the immediate shortfall in revenue.”
Greg Girard added, “Dunoon Burgh Hall has been the cornerstone of the town’s cultural and community life for 150 years, providing countless opportunities for learning, creativity, and connection for people of all ages and walks of life. But sadly, like many arts organisations which rely on funding, it is finding it difficult to operate in the current financial climate. Costs have risen dramatically, and funding is getting harder to come by, which has left the hall facing a significant shortfall.”
Designed by architect Robert Alexander Bryden, the grey schist building dates from 1873 and, at the time of its opening, was home to the first theatre in Argyll. It was used for dancing, singing, meeting and performing before housing council activities.
One of its most prominent features is a circular stained-glass window featuring a bearded, spear-wielding Viking. It was created by artist James Ballantine, who was also contracted to colour some of the windows in the House of Lords.
The B-listed hall, which was refurbished in 2017, is now a creative, cultural hub for Cowal. It is now a fully accessible venue for exhibitions, performances and gatherings. Alongside a gallery and theatre, the venue offers workshop space, a garden and a cafe.
Donations to the Dunoon Burgh Hall can be made at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-save-dunoon-burgh-hall
