In answer to Mary Rackett’s letter on the subject of using the Legion instead of building the new community centre, I am sorry to say that the town council has consistently turned down any possibility of using this and other premises in the town.

Last year, when I was a councillor, I put forward the Pit Club as a possible contender, how wrong was I!

Apparently, this had been considered before, likewise the Carlton, Royal British Legion and several others.

They were all turned down, mainly on the grounds of being too expensive to renovate. When the town clerk was asked what the estimate for renovating the Legion was, the answer was “over a million”.

Strangely, the estimate for every one of these buildings was also “over a million”. I then asked who had carried out these estimations. Her answer was: “Someone who is well qualified.” However, we were not told who this was.

The adaptation of existing buildings would mean that there would have to be compromises and the council might have to scale down some of their expectations. They are clearly not prepared to do this. They want a brand new build and nothing else will do. But in whose best interest is this?

Cecily Young

Honiton