A letter to all members of the Province
from the Chairman of the Freemasons' Hall Company Bridge Street Manchester

Bridge Street Freemasons' Hall Redevelopment

As Chairman of the Hall Company I am writing to update you at the beginning of the new Masonic season and I should be grateful if you would read this letter in its entirety in Open Lodge or alternatively copy to all members of the Lodge with your Lodge Minutes of your first meeting after receipt of this letter which I would prefer. The work of the Development Sub-Committee to date has now been passed to a new sub-committee of ELMC, the owners of Freemasons Hall, which I have been asked to continue to chair. I would like to take this opportunity of thanking all those that have worked on the previous committee for the invaluable guidance that they have given to the Project to date.

Various alternatives have been considered including building a new Hall on the site of the existing car park, moving away from Bridge Street and remodelling the existing building. Freemasons' Hall is still one of, if not ,the finest Masonic building outside London and the Development Sub-Committee felt that it would be wrong to abandon the building for Masonic use if this can be avoided. It has therefore been decided that our preference is to remodel part of the existing building for Masonic use so as to create an environment appropriate for the 21 st century whilst at the same time preserving many of the historic features of the building. The proposal involves retaining the Memorial Hall as an entrance and focal point with the administration and non-dining and non-lodge functions being provided for on the first floor of the existing building together with the equivalent floor of an extension to be built on the car park site, with all dining facilities and lodge rooms to be placed on the similarly extended area of the second floor. By using an extension into the car park site we believe this will give us more than enough space for all our future requirements in a much more convenient configuration. The exact design and configuration will be subject to planning requirements and architectural advice but we already have a “skeleton” proposal which has satisfied us that all our needs can be met in this new space. The entrance will be from the Memorial Hall up the existing staircase. In addition it will be a condition of any development that there is underground car parking.

The remainder of the existing building and of the new build on the car park site, together with any permissible “over build” will be used for commercial residential and\or retail purposes as the appointed developer may decide in conjunction with the local authority, planning officers and English Heritage.

A firm of national property consultants, Lambert Smith Hampton, have been instructed to advise us on the details of this development and have prepared a brief which will be published very shortly and therefore the outline proposals will be public knowledge.

Whatever the final configuration of the development is including both the Masonic and other uses the cost of the development will be borne by the developer appointed and I can assure Brethren throughout the Province that there will be no call upon them to fund the new development in any way whatsoever.

You will therefore see publicity in the press advertising the proposed development and asking for interested parties to submit their proposals according to a strict timetable and I therefore hope to be able to report further on this before the end of the current Masonic Year. I must stress that no final decisions or commitments have been made of any nature but we have been advised that to maximise the benefits from our present asset the Planning Authorities will require the fullest exposure of the development opportunity in the market place after which we will be able to make the appropriate choice and present it as a full scheme to the Brethren and also to the authorities from whose consent and approval is necessary.

The Development Committee and the Board of ELMC is satisfied that this way forward is by far the best and I can assure you that there will be no change in the present arrangements in the foreseeable future. When I have a better idea of the details of the proposed development this will be communicated to the Province when it is hoped that a provisional timetable for the development can be given. If the development requires us to vacate the existing building for a period of time then alternative arrangements for lodge meetings will be made by the Hall Company and it will not be necessary for individual lodges to make their own arrangements. I appreciate that the whole process is protracted but it is important that we make the right decisions.

The final decision will be that of the ELMC Board who of course own Freemasons Hall and that decision will have to be approved by the Charity Commissioners. You will be kept informed of the process and have an opportunity to comment on the proposals.

Thank you for your continued patience

 

Kind regards, yours sincerely and fraternally

PAUL M A ROSE

28 September 2006