'Ambush' claim after council says more repairs are needed at the Marcus Garvey Centre

COMMUNITY GROUP HOPING TO BUY HISTORIC BUILDING CLAIM WORK CARRIED OUT MADE IT FULLY COMPLIANT WITH FIRE RISK ASSESSMENT

- By OLIVER PRIDMORE

NOTTINGHAM City Council is set to decide whether to sell off a building needing £1million of repairs in weeks as the cash-strapped authority cannot fund the fixes itself.

On top of the problems already identified, those hoping to take the site on claim they were recently “ambushed” when the council said even more repairs were needed.

The Labour-run authority confirmed in February it was forcing the closure of the historic Howitt Building on Lenton Boulevard after a raft of fire risks were found.

The Howitt Building, built in the 1930s as the HQ of Raleigh Bikes, was sold to the council in the 1980s and now has two primary functions. Half of the site is known as the Lenton Business Centre, which contains office spaces for rental, whilst the other half is known as The Marcus Garvey Centre.

The latter, featuring a ballroom upstairs and a day centre downstairs, has played a pivotal role for Nottingham’s Afro-Caribbean community.

Those running the Marcus Garvey Centre say that for their part of the Howitt Building, they now have a fully compliant fire risk assessment. But work is still needed across the rest of the site, with the council previously quoting over £300,000 being needed for fire safety works.

The council says around £340,000 is also needed for heating works, £350,000 for roofing repairs and £30,000 for energy efficiency.