THE Mayor of Romsey has thrown his support behind a campaign over one of the biggest schemes in the town's history.

John Ray is one of around 2,300 people who have signed a petition that calls for civic chiefs to keep the Crosfield Hall in its current location. 

The issue has been hugely controversial with the recent announcement of the next round of consultation launching this summer. A new Citizens' Assembly will be held in June and July, five years on from the previous one. This will give residents the chance to have their say on the hall's future. 

Hilary Philbin launched the campaign on February 16 in an online form and paper copies. Mrs Philbin recently extended the closing date of the petition from April 2 to April 16. 

By April 3, 210 people had signed the online petition. However, paper copies have been distributed around the town, including at 15 businesses. 

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Hampshire Chronicle: Crosfield Hall.

Mr Ray said: “As mayor of the town, people have approached me about this. People want the Crosfield Hall to stay where it is. It's an iconic building at the entrance to the town. 

“The petition is important because it shows the local authority how people feel. People want clarity.”

The mayor works as a hairdresser and owns BellRay Hair Design in Love Lane. He added: “Speaking as a shopkeeper, Romsey is thriving. There are very few empty shops. With the town centre being developed, people may not want to come to the centre while construction is going on. It might take years for them to want to come back.

“If it ain't broke, don't fix it. The town is really good at the moment.”

Mr Ray agreed with a letter in the Romsey Advertiser on March 29 from Patricia Roberts, of Winchester Hill, which said: “Given that Test Valley has declared a climate emergency, refurbishment would help the councillors and planners to minimise the whole-life carbon emissions of their plans, as the emissions for refurbishment are around one fifth of the emissions for demolition and rebuild.

“Refurbishing the hall would satisfy the wishes of many Romsonians, it would save Crosfield Hall for future generations and (partly) save the planet.”

Residents have criticised the proposal to move the hall to the Romsey Rapids site because it's outside the town centre. However, civic chiefs have argued that it will be central when the 1,100 home development at Whitenap is constructed. 

Also, the idea of the hall being refurbished has been criticised as Romsey Future said it would mean residents would be without a community facility for two years. If Crosfield Hall is moved, the old one would not be demolished until the new one was built. 

Romsey Future, the group working on the South of Romsey Town Centre Masterplan, previously said that no final decision had been made on the relocation of the hall. 

Community groups wanting to participate in the consultation should email romseyfuture@testvalley.gov.uk.