Emotional day for councillor after long-awaited Northampton community centre overhaul finished
The Rectory Farm Community Centre face lift has finally been completed - nine months after Goodfellow Construction first stepped foot on site back in October.
But renovation plans have been in the pipework for about four years.
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Hide AdIt comes as the borough council was paid an out-of-court settlement by Hawthorn Leisure in 2017 from a 'community covenant' when they applied to convert the Barn Owl pub into a Co-op supermarket.
It has meant the £300,000 renovation could be part funded by a £100,000 compensation payout by Hawthorn Leisure and the remaining £200,000 was approved by borough council cabinet.
This money was then earmarked to be put back into Rectory Farm, which has now been used entirely to renovate the community centre.
Renovation works have included a brand new kitchen, a second 75 square metre hall for weddings receptions and community groups and a safe outdoor garden to be used by the play group.
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Hide AdIt is hoped the hall will be available to safely hire out from September and discussions are being had about decorating the play school.
Councillor James Hill (Con, Rectory Farm) said the community was really dissapointed to lose the pub but groups will now benefit from the new space
He said: "It's quite nice to know that this will be here for decades to come.
"It's quite emotional actually when you see it finished, seeing it in the flesh is so different from seeing the plans.
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Hide Ad"It will have a massive impact, we have doubled the capacity with what we can offer the community now."
Toby Birch, chair of Rectory Farm Residents' Association, added: "This has been an amazing achievement to have the community centre developed and the addition of a new
is a real boost for the community. It will open up new opportunities.
"I am very much looking forward to opening the new revised site. At some point we will have an official opening community event.
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Hide Ad"The standard of work is great and will be a big boost for the community and Community Spaces Northampton. It has been a fantastic opportunity to work with the architects, builders, contractors, the local community, and NBC officers and councillor James Hill on this successful development - it is a vast improvement on the previous centre."
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