MNH Bids Rejected

[Rhumsaa 3,332]

heritage diesel train anyone?

[Pipsqueak 330]

17 minutes ago, Rhumsaa said:

heritage diesel train anyone?

in 50 years

[SleepyJoe 169]

4 hours ago, Roger Mexico said:

They do have some already (though Milntown is an independent trust).  I suppose they could let out more of their properties as holiday lets (eg in Cregneash) but some might think they would be better using those for permanent tenants, given shortage of reasonable priced rentals.

They have a very nice one down north Yn Thie Thooit

Quite lucrative in the summer months (normally) I'm sure

I'm thinking more of unusual spaces to let out, much as Landmark Trust market unusual heritage properties

 

Edited March 7 by SleepyJoe

[Non-Believer 13,260]

Agreement reached on a 50/50 basis between MNH and Treasury it would appear, although the maintenance costs for the Wheel have risen by a further £300k (on top of the £450k) for painting and pointing. MNH to draw on some money that they were bequeathed.

[SleepyJoe 169]

I very much got the impression that Mr Southworth believes regular maintenance for the Laxey wheel is pointlessly expensive

I also get the impression that the promise to return the The Peggy to the Castletown Maritime Museum is not going to be honoured

[Peter Layman 202]

2 hours ago, Non-Believer said:

Agreement reached on a 50/50 basis between MNH and Treasury it would appear, although the maintenance costs for the Wheel have risen by a further £300k (on top of the £450k) for painting and pointing. MNH to draw on some money that they were bequeathed.

Playing havoc with that song then "oh the Laxey Wheel keeps turning, turning oh wait

[SleepyJoe 169]

Mr Southworth was saying they have tremendous problems with big wooden beams, especially ones that came into constant contact with water

You wonder - well I do - whether the big laminated beams made by folks like Accsys Technologies would fare any better

[doc.fixit 3,025]

Probably pressure treated?

[Boris Johnson 907]

31 minutes ago, SleepyJoe said:

Mr Southworth was saying they have tremendous problems with big wooden beams, especially ones that came into constant contact with water

You wonder - well I do - whether the big laminated beams made by folks like Accsys Technologies would fare any better

This.

Make glue lam beams and stain them dark, would be stronger, longer lasting and unlikely to warp.

Yes its not as the original but hell, we have a "heritage " train set with concrete sleepers.

[Andy Onchan 4,690]

I was told a while back, may be 2-3 years ago, that MNH are not short of a few bob and so the £5 million they're looking for from the taxpayer wouldn't put much of a dint in their liquid assets. As a former Trustee perhaps JW might be able to confirm that??

[Non-Believer 13,260]

1 minute ago, Andy Onchan said:

I was told a while back, may be 2-3 years ago, that MNH are not short of a few bob and so the £5 million they're looking for from the taxpayer wouldn't put much of a dint in their liquid assets. As a former Trustee perhaps JW might be able to confirm that??

Maybe some questions should be asked about MNH's ability to fund some of this themselves. Taxpayer's £5M won't go far given the aspirations for a £2.18M "visitor centre" at the Wheel (WTF?) and the £5M store they're wanting for whatever reason as well. There must be empty hangars/units at Jurby they could use? Especially if DOI and Bus Vannin clear out some of the things they'd rather keep hidden 😂

[Max Power 6,717]

1 hour ago, Boris Johnson said:

This.

Make glue lam beams and stain them dark, would be stronger, longer lasting and unlikely to warp.

Yes its not as the original but hell, we have a "heritage " train set with concrete sleepers.

Our railway infrastructure is no longer heritage, rather 'heritage themed' a la Douglas ticket hall.

[SleepyJoe 169]

31 minutes ago, Non-Believer said:

Maybe some questions should be asked about MNH's ability to fund some of this themselves. Taxpayer's £5M won't go far given the aspirations for a £2.18M "visitor centre" at the Wheel (WTF?) and the £5M store they're wanting for whatever reason as well. There must be empty hangars/units at Jurby they could use? Especially if DOI and Bus Vannin clear out some of the things they'd rather keep hidden 😂

Maybe if they spent £4m on redeveloping the Castletown Maritime Museum to accommodate the restored Peggy, they wouldn't need a £5m storeroom somewhere else

[doc.fixit 3,025]

As someone else has posted I thought sea water preserved wood and it was fresh water that caused rot? 

Is that true?

If it's true then maybe it was ok where it was.

[John Wright 8,860]

1 hour ago, Andy Onchan said:

I was told a while back, may be 2-3 years ago, that MNH are not short of a few bob and so the £5 million they're looking for from the taxpayer wouldn't put much of a dint in their liquid assets. As a former Trustee perhaps JW might be able to confirm that??

I had a look and couldn’t see all the accounts on line.

MNH has its statutory funding and accounts. It also has private funds from donations and legacies. The private funds are two types, general - which can be used for anything, or segregated - which were raised, donated or left with a specific purpose attached - and can only be used for that purpose. That’s because it’s a hybrid organisation, part statutory, like National Heritage in England, and part a voluntary charity,  like National Trust in England.

Then there’s a third funding source, the separate body known as Friends of Manx National Heritage. That has donation and legacy income/capital.

I don’t recall free assets approaching the type of figures you suggest. One of the big issues from 25+ years of involvement has been the acquisition of heritage assets - often funded by grants from the tax payer - but with no endowment for running costs and no guarantee of running costs from the tax payer. They learned to stop acquiring such assets.

Last time I was a trustee there was always a huge sum in the projected expenses/estimates for a motorsport museum. It was turned down, by Treasury, every year. It just got put back, to the next year, and the year after, and so on.

If they’d been allocated the capital and had built it there wasn’t the money to employ staff, to fit out the displays, even to pay the electric.

Much of the estate is old, requires constant and expensive attention, and budget cuts have meant that Peter has been robbed to pay for the jobs on Paul. Castle Rushen and House of Mannanan are tired they need re displaying, just like the folk galleries did, otherwise they become museums of museum history and culture rather than of Manx history and culture.