RESIDENTS will have the final say over the sale of Longhope's Latchen Room and the building of a new village hall with a local poll, probably to be held in early May.
This will follow an open afternoon in the Latchen Room on Saturday, April 8 from 2pm-4pm, at which the public will be able to put questions, and the annual parish meeting on April 17 at which further views can be expressed.
In answer to a number of press stories concerning the hall sale the parish council states that its meetings have always made time for local concerns to be aired.
"This project is spearheaded by Longhope Parish Council with the unanimous backing of the Latchen Room management committee and the overwhelming support of the residents who attended the open meeting in January 1998," the council states.
It said the committee had tried unsuccessfully for years to raise money to extend the hall.
"When the new school was proposed the parish council saw this as an opportunity to provide much better facilities and give a centre to the village."
District councillor Mrs Henbest's role had been to arrange any meetings necessary with the district council, although she too was in favour of the project, discussions were held with a number of village organisations and progress was always reported to local newspapers.
The council continues: "It now remains for the Latchen Room management committee, as charity trustees, to obtain by vote the approval of residents to the sale of the Latchen Room to provide the necessary capital to obtain grants."
To this end an exhibition was put up in the post office, it said, and a questionnaire seeking views resulted in 101 replies covering 246 residents showing a two-to-one result in favour of the new hall.
The council says that if they get the go-ahead for the new hall then future work will be handed to a steering committee for which professional volunteers are being sought.