Corner House Ann Downer room change of use !

Fri 9 Jul 2021, 12:14 (last edited on Fri 9 Jul 2021, 14:10)

Having been on the Corner House Committee in the past ( 3 year stint), It's been brought to my attention by concerned members of Charlbury that there is rumour that the down stairs "Anne Downer Room" in the Corner House is on the agenda for discussion to be turned into a 2nd hand book shop at the next Corner House committee meeting, whether this is complete conversion or just having book shelves around the walls we have yet to find out.

I agree that books having been for sale upstairs have benefited the corner house immensely in the past, I'm sure these sales can continue in their present position just as well.

I along with other members of Charlbury will be bitterly disappointed if the Anne Downer room loses it's position of being the central hub of Charlbury for Coffee mornings and gatherings, which are in the spirit of why the Corner house was given to the town in the first place.

The Anne Downer room benefits lots of Charities and Organisations both in and around Charlbury, and is the central hub of the town for this sort of gathering, yes there is the Memorial Hall/ Garden room but these are too big for this sort of gathering you lose the camaraderie if everyone is too spread out, yes I know people will say but we are just coming out of a pandemic we need space but things will eventually get back to some normality and if you change the use of the room now, it is highly unlikely to be changed back in the future.

I would think that having shelves of books around the walls of the Anne Downer would be a far better solution and a great asset to the corner house, this would increase their sales and still allow the room to be used for Coffee mornings and gatherings which all helps to raise much needed funds for the corner house, but and I may be jumping the gun here, should the Corner house Committee feel that the Book shop should have the whole Anne Downer room then this I feel it would be a huge slap in the face to all the people that have used the room and supported the Corner House in the past, and I would urge the committee before they take this route that they put it to the town for a consultation, so that all the Charities and organisations and the people that use the Corner House can put their view across, hopefully by bringing this to peoples attention in advance we can help the committee come to the right decision, and I urge you that should you be reading this and agree then please use the comments section and put your point across as if your views are made public then there is a better chance in saving the Anne Downer room for Coffee Mornings and Gatherings.

Many thanks in advance