Public boss in pledge over gallery
Friday 30th January 2009, 11:29AM GMT.
The project director charged with overseeing the day-to-day running of £63 million Black Country arts centre The Public today said he was happy with plans to push ahead and open its gallery.
David Clarke has been running the building in West Bromwich since November 2007 and has been at the very heart of the debate over the £63 million project, beset by delays and overspends.
Today he was meeting with the Arts Council to talk about what went wrong with the business plans, thrown out by the funding body earlier this week.
But he vowed he will work Sandwell Council to press ahead and open the gallery – the building’s main attraction – and make it work, despite the Arts Council warning it is not viable.
He said: “The Arts Council has been providing £500,000 a year to the Public Gallery Limited and has now offered the council £3 million to make it work.
“This is all the we ever wanted. It is difficult to say what will happen next as there are still a lot of decisions to be made now. “Experts and assessors from the Arts Council are meeting with me today to talk about the issues they had with the plan. “At the moment I know as much as anyone else about what went wrong. Then we will work out a timetable of meeting and a date to submit a revised business plan to them.”
Today it was revealed 30 staff who were working for the Public Gallery Ltd, the firm delivering the interactive gallery inside the building that remains shut, will lose their jobs.
At the same time, Sandwell Council’s chief executive Allison Fraser has written to staff at the authority claiming The Public will be a success. Mr Clarke expressed sympathy for the staff who lost their jobs.
He added he did not know when the gallery will open or what the charges will be.
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dave clarke has got more faith in this sad state of affairs than i have or is he just trying to protect is job stop throwing good money at it if he would have asked the people they would have told him why it did not work they did not want it how much plainer does he want it
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“David Clarke, the project director charged with overseeing the day-to-day running of £63 million Black Country arts centre The Public today said he was happy with plans to push ahead and open its gallery”
Well he would say that wouldn’t he? He is hardly likely to say I am being paid loads of money to run what is in effect a total disaster that no one wants!!!! Wonder if he will still say the same when he is sacked?
David Clarke said today he was meeting with the Arts Council to talk about what went wrong with the business plans, thrown out by the funding body earlier this week and make it work, despite the Arts Council warning it is not viable, so even more money being wasted on useless meetings, just how many times will he ignore the advice available????
David Clarke here is some more advice and mine doesn’t cost the earth, its totally free, read the comments made in here and you will hopefully understand, this abortion isn’t wanted, it never was, it never will be, stop wasting anymore of OUR money!!!!!!!
“At the moment I know as much as anyone else about what went wrong” no you don’t, everyone else knows it was a disaster from its first conception!!!!!! Trouble is there was no one on Sandwell Labour Council, big enough to admit they got it wrong.
“At the same time, Sandwell Council’s chief executive Allison Fraser has written to staff at the authority claiming The Public will be a success”
Sandwell’s boss Allison Fraser earns £139,461!!!!!! WHY??????? To make ridiculous statements like that??? Allison Fraser, you say “The Public will be a success” put your money where your mouth is, if it isn’t a success, pay back all the money you have been paid for failing to deliver on your contract.
Jim Gull, Bearwood.
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hear hear gym my sentinments exactly
I am sick and tied of people in power or in top jobs, not being held accountable for there actions !.
they should have never built the bloody thing in the first place, god knows what they will do with it now, cant believe people thought it was going to serve people in sandwell.
All the members on sandwell council that gave the go ahead should hang there heads in shame.
for once and for all get rid of it !!!!
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Well said Jim, nice to see that at least you have a brain which is more than can be said about ‘The Powers that be’
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Hi Jim, wrote a reponse on another article to your ramblings. I’d just like to make one simple point the 10 people that write on here doesn’t provide a true representation of Sandwell and their opinions. I often read articles online but only 1 in 100 ever make me want to write anything and its not usually the article that does that but the forum ranters that make me laugh, or that I’m tired of hearing the same ill informed rubbish. Your opinion isn’t indicative of everybodies.
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