AFTER using it as its headquarters for the last 22 years, the West Looe Town Trust is to move out of the ancient and quaint Cobblers Cottage.
They have announced the purchase of Bassetts Garage in St Nicholas Square, which will be used as a new office and store, with the remainder to be let out as a working garage for motors or even marine engineering. The garage was advertised for sale at £75,000 but the Trust has not confirmed if they paid the asking price.
Trust chairman Geraldine Oliver, the first woman to hold the post in the Trust's 150 years of history, said the seven Trustees and the clerk found it a tight fit into the very small cottage for meetings, and saw the arrival of Bassetts Garage on the market, due to the owner's retirement, as the ideal opportunity to move. 'We want to lease part of the property as a garage again as our way of putting something back into the community' she said. 'It will hopefully provide some employment for local people'. Planning permission has been given for alterations and the Trust hopes to make the move within the next three months.
The Trust will not be selling the cottage and have already received several enquiries from people wishing to rent it for office space. Local tales say it was once the home of a man and wife who brought up up 13 children in the one up and one down little house, but for certain it was once a cobblers shop, and was used as a store for fruit and vegetables by the Round House opposite.