THE DECISION by Stratford Town Trust to sell off three historic pubs has not gone down well with locals.
But the trust has refuted claims it is “selling off the family silver” and that in actual fact the Garrick in High Street, the Windmill in Church Street and the Coach House in Rother Street are all more secure for being sold.
It was announced at last week’s AGM that several historic properties had been sold from the trust’s portfolio. It has emerged these are all pubs in the town centre.
The action has been branded as “short-sighted” by former Stratford mayor Cyril Bennis.
He told the Observer the trust had shown complete disregard to the importance of these historical buildings to the character of the town, as well as a worrying lack of creative long term planning and business foresight.
Mr Bennis continued: “For me these properties are some of the most outstanding buildings of our market town, having been in existence since Shakespeare’s time, and are a significant part of the justification of the marketing claim of Stratford upon Avon to be a ‘historic market town’.”
The trust is a grant giving charity that derives its income from a mix of equity investments and the rental of commercial and residential property which come together in an endowment portfolio which has its origins in the 13th century.
Today, the trust’s substantial portfolio is worth around £59million made up of a mixture of investments and 109 properties in Stratford, including residential, commercial, land and a public car park.
It is through its endowed investment that it is able to award annual grants of around £2 million.
Chief executive Sara Aspley told the paper that any profits from selling property were reinvested into the town and that the trustees carefully considered the sale of any property case-by-case.
And in this instance, she continued, these three pubs were more secure for being sold to their current operators who would be able to keep the pubs alive against a backdrop of a sharp decline in the public house industry over the last two years.
Ms Aspley added: “If the pubs had had to close while in trust ownership and no new owners could be found they could become a millstone around our necks and the 155 groups and charities we support would be impacted.”
