Eight weeks have passed and we are now wind, water and pigeon tight. The Palace has a beautifully rendered rear wall, a tidy and buddleia free frontage, windows are glazed or properly boarded and the canopy no longer sports a roof garden. The cost of work involved to meet the 90 day order placed upon it by the council prior to our purchase of a 35 year lease is not fully quantified but is estimated to have cost around £100,000 in time and materials, the majority of which has been donated by our business partners, volunteers and dedicated GO! Palace Team. This has been a massive undertaking to meet the fixed period work deadline and I cant thank enough all those who have become involved for their help and commitment to restoring this beautiful old building for the people of Plymouth and just to celebrate we added some lights to illuminate the front at night.
There is more work to do on the roof and that is a priority whilst the weather is dry and the sun is shining. For anyone who knows
about grant funding it will be obvious we cannot wait six months for a trust or charity to make up its mind to donate a gift towards repairs. Those who know about grant funding will also be aware that we cant claim or ask for reimbursement for the cost of work already undertaken. So the roof is something we will have to do together and we are looking for new partners who will help us in this huge task. The roof is now watertight but really we need some expert roofers and roofing companies to provide us with some time and materials to ensure that it stays that way.
Inside the main auditorium there is a noticeable difference. The cold, dank smell has gone, uncovered windows allow shafts of daylight to stream onto the once proud and intricate stage plasterwork, temporary lighting illuminates former spooky corridors, and the stairwells are clear of rubbish. The pigeons have gone from the gods and there is the air of a slow but steady revival.
Due to the really hot weather and a watertight roof the timbers and walls that have suffered years of water ingress are drying out, which is good news for the old Victorian wood that will continue to stand the test of time. However the 1990s dance floor, and other 90s chip board flooring, early 0s mirror ceilings and tiles is quickly warping or as in the case of a huge 0s light fitting, it has simply fallen down. What remained of the old red carpet of the Dance Academy in the hallway and on the stairs has been another casualty of the effect of hot weather on once sodden materials. The carpets were growing mouldy and have had to be removed but have revealed in the foyer the original marble entrance floor that is still in reasonable condition. Yes the Victorians really did know how to build for endurance.
We continue to make discoveries weekly as the stately old building gives up more of its hidden history. When we were removing the carpet we uncovered a small fireplace in the foyer that was hidden behind a piece of old chipboard, a few old gas lamp fittings were found in the corner of a once dark room, and just one of the original pew type seats from the gods, found in a stairwell has survived previous iterations of the building.
On the charity side we have had good talks this month with local colleges and educationalists. As you know the charity has purchased the lease with the intention of creating opportunities for all young people, and especially those with additional needs or who have made poor life choices to enable them to learn new skills, and access real job opportunities and apprenticeships. As an example of our talks it has been really encouraging this month to discuss the possibility of the many window frames that need to be individually hand crafted in wood being made by local students as part of their college course work with a view to each frame carrying a small plaque with the students name and date of completion. We will similarly record the names of those who donate their time or materials to get involved in other areas of replacements from plaster on walls to the restoration and the painting of the intricate plasterwork around the stage, boxes, and galleries.
We are primarily a charity that encourages work by young people but working with our sister organisation Action for People EVERYONE is encouraged to become involved and contribute to the restoration process and by recording the names of those who become engaged we will show future generations that this project was carried out for Plymouth, by the people of Plymouth. We also need to point out that if you are over the age of 30 and are interested in skills training or apprenticeships Action for People will be pleased to assist you wherever possible as part of the GO! Palace project.
Photo of Alex Ward doing his work experience as Executive Assistant at GO! Palace alongside Heather the other week
So what do we need by way of donated goods or services at the moment?
One immediate priority this month is to bring the toilets up to top notch standard. To this end we really would appreciate the following:
- VOLUNTEER PLUMBERS
- 20 close coupled toilets and cisterns
- All fittings and toilet seats
- 100 metres of copper pipe 15mm
- 100 metres of copper pipe 22mm
- 10 wash hand basins plus taps and fittings
- 6 urinals plus fittings
- Floor covering suitable for toilet areas
- 6 hand dryers
- light fittings for toilet areas
I personally would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has worked so hard this last 8 weeks to make things happen, we could not have taken on this huge project without the support of volunteers and organisations getting involved. Thanks to you we have already given hundreds of hours of opportunities to people and we look forward to facilitating many more. Come and be part of this great project and help make this dream a reality!
Heather Hunter
Chief Executive
GO! (Great Opportunities) Together
GO! Palace fundraising campaign for phase 1 building works
– get involved and help us bring this historic building in Plymouth back to life!
[button link=”http://www.totalgiving.co.uk/appeal/GOPalacePhase1″ size=”large” bg_color=”#b4c327″]DONATE TO GO! PALACE CAMPAIGN PHASE 1[/button]