The Chief Minister says it is ‘absolutely disgraceful’ that the owners of the Castle Mona Hotel have allowed the historic building to deteriorate.
Allan Bell made the comment in the House of Keys when he was asked if he has plans for a national art gallery and whether he would approach the Gubay Trust to secure the Castle Mona as a suitable venue.
Mr Bell said there had been no such proposal. He told MHKs: ‘The Castle Mona is a privately-owned building. I think it is absolutely disgraceful the way the building has been allowed to deteriorate, and I hope the company listens to public opinion and the concerns which are being expressed about the continuing deterioration of what is a major national asset and part of our heritage.’
The Chief Minister said there has been no proposal whatsoever, as far as he knew, to establish a national gallery in the Castle Mona.
He pointed out that the Gubay Foundation is also in private hands and it is entirely up to the trustees of the charity as to where they invest their money in the future.
The issue was raised in the Keys by Douglas East MHK Jon Joughin who said: ‘I do think a dedicated national art gallery is the way forward.’
He suggested that the Manx Museum probably had more art and artefacts in storage than they had on show.
Mr Bell agreed with Mr Joughin’s comments about the lack of display of a large number of Manx paintings and other artefacts which he said are ‘buried away’ in the basement of the museum and which could be put on display, not only in Douglas, but all round the island.
David Quirk (Onchan) suggested that the political representative on Manx National Heritage could encourage the lending out of more of the artwork. ‘Our own building itself could be enhanced even more with some artwork,’ he said.
Mr Bell agreed - and not just for government buildings, but for wider public access. ‘All around the island, there are many buildings that are suitable or could be suitably adapted to ensure that the island gets a fair spread of this national heritage,’ he said.
The Sefton Group bought the Castle Mona in 2007. It’s original plan had been to refurbish the listed building as a four-star hotel but it has remained mothballed and fenced off ever since. A plan for the landmark to be leased to the Manx Education Foundation for its proposed university ICT centre fell through when the Nunnery was selected instead. Sefton Group say its aim continues to be to sell the listed landmark into sustainable use.
Last November Environment Minister Richard Ronan told Tynwald that there had been no ‘discernible deterioration’ since previous visits by conservation officers.