Old River Lane: Parish poll over demolition-threatened Water Lane hall on hold as council looks to explore options

Plans for a £12,000 parish poll about the future of the Water Lane United Reformed Church Hall were put on hold this week.

Contexture Theatre’s Gailie Pollock, the Bishop’s Stortford resident and co-founder of the Bishop’s Stortford Arts Forum who called the advisory ballot, reached agreement with the town council at a meeting on Monday.

The 108-year-old hall, owned by East Herts Council, is set to be razed as part of the district authority’s planned Old River Lane (ORL) development, featuring a new arts centre, shops, offices and 225 homes.

Ms Pollock was reassured when town councillors endorsed a motion from Cllr David Snowdon, the deputy leader and chairman of the finance committee, repeating his pledge that he and the leader, Cllr John Wyllie, would meet with the district council’s executive to discuss options for the hall and whether East Herts was willing to sell.

If a deal was possible, he promised that the finance committee would consider the matter “in conjunction with local stakeholders” like the Friends of Water Lane Hall. The organisation is ready to present plans to upgrade the building and run it as a performance space and community asset.

At the annual town meeting, a community forum, on March 6, Ms Pollock won backing for a question designed to test public opinion about the demolition, which is vehemently opposed by arts and other community groups.

On Monday, she was told that East Herts Council’s monitoring officer had ruled her poll question was invalid because it was a composite not capable of being answered with a single yes or no by voters.

Councillors and members of the public present were also told the poll demand presented a number of problems for both the town and district councils.

Chief executive Huw Jones said: “The first point to bear in mind is that the town council pays the entire cost of carrying out the parish poll, a cost of approximately £12,000 estimated in the case of this question... the poll necessitates 18 polling stations, with lockable ballot boxes to be purchased, and the requisite paper and staffing costs are on top of that.”

He said that in the run-up to local government elections on May 4, this would place a huge administrative burden on East Herts Council, and combining the polls would be illegal.

Ms Pollock said: “I and other Friends of Water Lane Hall do not want to put the council to unnecessary expense, but we are determined that the residents be heard on this matter.”

She said she was reserving the right to call a new parish meeting and table a new poll question if necessary, noting her actions had opened the door to dialogue.

One of her supporters, Stephen Skinner, told the councillors: “What I’m concerned about here is democracy, not the price of democracy.”

Cllr Wyllie said that it was important to remember that the poll was not an expense for the council, it was an expense for council taxpayers.