‘Comfort letter’ could be answer to PI problem

A NEW solution to the woes of Moffat’s Proudfoot Institute has been forward by the Proudfoot Indoor Sports and Social Club (PISC) as their September deadline looms.

The club have been locked in a back and forth with the legal arm of the council for a number of years over a long-term lease for the building.

When negotiations broke down earlier this year the club declared a hard deadline of September to find a solution otherwise they would vacate the building.

However the club have now changed tactics and speaking on behalf of the PISC at Tuesday’s meeting of Moffat and District Community Council, Don Gillespie said: “The communication from Dumfries and Galloway Council is awful, the feedback we’ve been getting in regards to the Proudfoot, it could have been written by the script writers of ‘Yes Minister’. The legal department and everyone else just responds with the same old whoo-wee and it doesn’t get us anywhere.

“We were trying to get a lease but that process has been going on for about two years and got us nowhere, so now we’re seeking a ‘comfort letter which would give the trust authority but also allows us to make decisions.

“That’s what we want to happen now because we’ve given up on the lease. Whether they can achieve this, God knows, and how long it’ll take them to decide, but that’s what we want.

“All we’re asking is for some communication and a bit of understanding and we can get this show on the road and keep it going for the people of Moffat.”

In response, Annandale North Cllr Carolyn Wilson, revealed that a meeting will take place to Wednesday discuss a comfort letter.

She said: “Hopefully following that we can drive that forward. There’s a meeting of the trust next week as well and it will probably be discussed then as well.

“But I totally agree that the communication from Dumfries and Galloway Council has been pretty appalling, and I understand what the PI means to Moffat, even though I’m not from here, and I have raised it with the council umpteen times but hopefully I’ll have an update for you soon.”