A NEW multi-purpose community centre for Hatherleigh, which hit a snag when lottery funding was turned down last year, has been highlighted as a flagship project for the Market and Coastal Towns Initiative in the South West.
The South West Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) has earmarked £20,000 to see the project get back on track, which includes carrying out a feasibility study.
The community centre is one of the regeneration schemes to be included in a community plan for Hatherleigh, which dictates how the town will develop over the next 20 years.
Hatherleigh was identified by SWRDA last year as one of seven Devon market towns to be included in the Market and Coastal Towns Initiative (M&CTI), which opens up opportunities to bid for millions of pounds of cash from the Government and other funding bodies.
Hatherleigh development worker Charles Coffin said the community centre plans hit a brick wall as far as funding was concerned last year ? but the RDA would be putting in extra funds to see it go forward, on top of the £60,000 given to the town recently to develop specific areas of the community plan.
Mr Coffin said: ?The regional development agency sees this as very much a pilot project for the M&CTI in the South West, because a lot of towns have community centres at the top of their wish list.
?Here is an opportunity to provide a scheme which can be replicated in other towns and the RDA?s interest in it is very significant for us.?
A site has been purchased near the bowling green and Mr Coffin said he expected the project to be at funding-ready stage by the spring.
Plans for a community centre were talked about several years ago after it became evident that a lot of money would need to be spent on bringing Hatherleigh Town Hall up to standard.
?At the end of the day we would still end up with a town hall no matter how much money we spent on it,? said Mr Coffin.
?Funds would be much better spent on a new purpose-built
facility.?