Alappuzha Town Hall lies abandoned as renovation plans stall
Alappuzha Town Hall renovation remains stalled two years after its closure, despite approved plans and funding.
Alappuzha Town Hall renovation remains stalled two years after its closure, despite approved plans and funding.
Alappuzha Town Hall renovation remains stalled two years after its closure, despite approved plans and funding.
Alappuzha: Two years have passed since the T V Thomas Memorial Town Hall was shut down for renovation.
It was in August 2023 that the hall was closed. What followed was a decision to completely demolish the structure and the formation of an ambitious plan to construct a new town hall at an estimated cost of ₹15 crore. However, barring the preparation of a project report, no steps have been taken towards the construction.
Once a popular venue for weddings, public meetings and events by political parties, the Town Hall has now been reduced to a storage facility for segregated plastic waste collected by the Haritha Karma Sena. Its courtyard, meanwhile, is being rented out for meagre sums to host political events and trade fairs.
In fact, the deteriorated state of the facility even forced officials to cancel an earlier plan to place the mortal remains of former Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan at the site for public homage. The venue was shifted to the Recreation Ground instead.
Initially, the municipality’s finance committee had proposed to begin construction by including the project in the 2023–24 annual plan. In February last year, the municipal council granted approval to take a ₹15 crore loan for building a new, air-conditioned Town Hall with three floors. The blueprint, prepared by the State Government’s agency KEL, proposes raising the funds through a loan from the National Housing Bank under the Central Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme.
Of the total cost, the municipality is required to contribute 15 per cent (₹2.5 crore) as its share. The proposed structure includes a modern auditorium on the ground floor with seating for 1,200, basement parking and seven suites, along with a mini-auditorium on the first floor.
“The municipality has earmarked funds for the initial phase of construction. The loan formalities are in the final stages. We hope to begin work before this committee’s term ends,” said P S M Hussain, Municipal Vice Chairperson.