Public’s 12 months of problems
Thursday 28th May 2009, 2:09PM BST.
Hi-tech exhibits at West Bromwich arts centre The Public still do not work – almost a year after the controversial gallery was due to open its doors to paying customers.
Next month will mark 12 months since the £63 million arts centre opened, but bosses today admitted there is still no opening date for the main gallery.
Sandwell Council has opted to forge ahead with plans to open the gallery, despite a warning from the Arts Council to look at other ideas.
After Public Gallery Ltd went into administration in February Sandwell Council assumed responsibility. The project is now being controlled by executive director for adult and community services John Garrett and libraries boss Linda Saunders who is the interim general manager.
Mr Garrett said: “We are not in a position to give an opening date at the moment.
“We are currently looking at the situation Public Gallery Ltd has left behind and how we as a council can pick up and operate the gallery element, which is clearly a new challenge for us.
“Obviously the exhibits are a big part of what The Public can offer and we need to assess how best to incorporate them in future overall plans.”
Exhibits at the gallery are working, but there have been problems linking them together to enable the gallery to work as a whole.
Councillor Tony Ward, who is leader of the Conservative group at the council, said that after a year of trying to make the electronic exhibits work, the council should give up and change tack.
“The whole project goes from bad to worse.
“I think the council needs to cut its losses and rethink the whole thing.”
Business Awards
Book a Business Awards table
Join our celebrations of the region's best in business on Thursday March 22 - book your table now
Lifestyle
Interactive Dining Out map
Hundreds of reviews by the Express & Star and Shropshire Star's teams to help you decide where to eat.
entertainment
All the film reviews
Before you plan a trip to the pictures, get our critics' verdicts on all the latest movie releases
OUR NEW APP
Get the new E&S app
Download the Express & Star’s new app to your iPad or iPhone to get one week of access to our digital newspapers absolutely FREE.
expressandstar.com
Popular sections
Useful links
Great thinking Tony – because you think members and officers haven’t already thought of that?
Hey Tony Ward, how about The Council puts it up for sale. Because a buyer is clearly going to come along and snap it up?
Or Tony Ward, how about you come up with some concrete, workable and feasible ideas rather than just sniping from the bushes?
Tories are a waste of space.
Report abuse
knock it down and reopen all the tax paying shops and the taxi rank illegally closed down by sandwell council
Report abuse
Give it back to the people of Sandwell. Turn it into a Mosque or Temple.
Report abuse
Give it back to the people of Sandwell. Turn it into a Mosque or Temple. Or an Academy for the Boggies.
Report abuse
Give it back to the people of Sandwell. Turn it into a Mosque or Temple.
Or an Academy for the Boggies.
Report abuse
what has exactly happened in the last year absolutley nothing except a few scratching of heads i bet there are a few councilors with splints in there fingers joking aside it goes from bad to worse the so called experts in this field could not make it work so how can the ameteurs that have took over possibly do any better the person who should sort this out is bob badman he wanted it let him sort it out or is he not around anymore [ I HOPE ]
Report abuse
Return it to the people of Sandwell.
I see 3 possible optionc
1) Turn it into a Mosque
2) Turn it into a Temple
2) Turn it into a Academy for the Boggies.
Report abuse
Connor, if the Tories are a waste of space then what does that make the Labour councillors who have backed this useless project from the beginning? Council taxpayers in Sandwell didn’t want it built and were never even asked if they wanted it, yet the council ploughed on regardless.
The way Sandwell Council is run by Labour is reflected in the way that they have run this country for the last 12 years – a complete shambles.
Report abuse
Give it to the people of Sandwell.
Let them use it as a Mosque or a Temple.
Alernatively you could let the Boggies have as an Academy.
Report abuse
Conner, I think you don’t understand. This monstrosity was backed by the (possibly) deluded Labour council. How anyone could think that spending 42 million (the original budget) on an oversized art gallery with dubious architectural merits (are you aware of Alsop’s other schemes) could be a good thing for West Brom is beyond me. Nobody seriously looked at the business plan if at all; the ridiculous statements that they were going to attract a 1/4 of million visitors each year were plain rubbish. If they were even serious about those numbers why was there no accommodation for parking in the town. I worked for three years next to this thing and the scandal is shocking, possibly more than the expenses claims we’re seeing now, but it’s on a small scale and in an unfashionable area. The truth is whoever let this building go ahead is responsible for wasting 60 million pounds, I just hope that they actually have a conscience and struggle to sleep at night. It is so wrong on so many levels that I just cannot accept that it got past any form of checks, and it seems that people were willing to believe whatever they were told
Report abuse
Me Thinks they was watching too much “Fields of Dreams”… if you build it they will come….
Btw went to West Brom on Sat, first time in about 3 years.
Must admit it is more of a grot hole then I remember. (wont comment on the people as not fair on the people, Dont tarnish every one with the same brush)
Bring on the Tesco Redevelopment along with the Queens Square plan
Report abuse