Greenock Town Hall unwrapped in time for Christmas
A major project to restore Greenock Town Hall has been completed in time for Christmas.
The £2 million project began in March this year and has seen a number of essential improvements to the roof, windows and ventilation system of the historic 19th Century building.
The town hall, part of the Category A-listed Greenock Municipal Buildings, is owned by Inverclyde Council and managed by Inverclyde Leisure.
As a result of the works taking place, the Wallace Place slip-road and lower half of William Street had to be closed to traffic and pedestrians, but both reopened today, Friday 20 December 2024.
Councillor Michael McCormick, Inverclyde Council’s convener of environment and regeneration, said: “Now that the scaffolding and coverings have come down, we can really see the amount of work which has gone into this restoration.
“The work has been painstaking but very worthwhile as it has extended the lifetime of this important historical building.
“It is now more energy efficient thanks to replacing every external window and the wind catchers on the roof have been restored so that they are fully functional and can now ventilate the building.
“Scottish Heritage-approved slate has been used to replace the old roof and all the work was carried out using traditional materials, skills and craftmanship.
“We are only the custodians of an historic building like this and have a duty to protect and preserve them for future generations to admire and enjoy.”
The work to the town hall includes:
- Three wind catchers on the top off the roof have been replaced with modern versions that echo the original design, and which also provide an energy efficient way to ventilate the town hall
- All 41 external windows and glazed screens in the building replaced
- A new slated roof, using Scottish Heritage-approved slate
- Gutters and lead work replaced
- Flat roofs replaced
- Timber rot repaired
- Exterior sandstone walls repaired and made safe.
All the work has been carried out using traditional materials and traditional skills and craftmanship.
The complicated scaffolding system was specially designed with cantilevers to protect the flat roofs.
The town hall dates back to 1765 and the Municipal Buildings were constructed around the venue as the population of Greenock and Inverclyde grew significantly in the mid to late 1800s.
Greenock Town Hall was built on land donated by Lieutenant-General Charles Schaw Cathcart, 9th Lord Cathcart.
To set this in historical context, Lord Cathcart was second in command of the government forces at Culloden (1746) and went on to be The British Ambassador to the Court of Catherine the Great in Russia.
The council has invested heavily in recent years to refurbish the internal areas of the town hall and saloon with this work bringing the external areas up to standard.
The town hall had major alteration works to the roof in 1858 and the Municipal Buildings were erected around it in the late 1880s.
