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Fears are growing that the prolonged closure of Glasgow Green’s Winter Gardens is to accommodate a new commercial operation for the glass house.

A series of council reports and internal emails seen by Glasgow Live have referenced the commercial viability of the Winter Gardens, while emphasising the need to establish a ‘sustainable’ future.

The People’s Palace and Winter Gardens were closed to the public in December 2018 to allow for vital repairs to take place. In April the People’s Palace reopened to the public, following a £350,000 repair operation.

However, the Winter Gardens adjoining the People’s Palace has remained closed for more than six months, fueling fears among Glaswegians it could close indefinitely. Council workshops and internal memos show that Glasgow Life is committed to reopening the attraction in some way, though it is not clear how.

One report entitled ‘Palace for the People/People’s Garden’ and circulated in an internal email chain on February 4th makes repeated reference to the financial viability of the Winter Gardens and People's Palace.

The report says that the venues must be “economically sustainable”, while pointing to the Wales Botanic Gardens, Kroller Muller and Jupiter Artland as examples of how the garden could be run - despite the fact these attracts charge an admission fee.

Glasgow City Council have confirmed, though, that no direct entry fee will be charged to enter the exhibit.

A different internal report, circulated on January 18, also mentions cost. The outcomes section at the end of the brief report and internal agenda says that aims to: “Identify opportunities for shared investment, partnerships, increased income and reduced costs.”

While the west end and city centre play host to attractions such as the Botanic Gardens, Kelvingrove Art Gallery and the Riverside Museum while the People’s Palace and Winter Gardens are one of the only council amenities in the east end.

In particular, 29% of visits to the venue are made by people coming from the poorest 20% of Scotland’s population. That is to say that nearly ⅓ of visits to the People’s Palace and Winter Gardens are made by people in the bottom fifth of Scotland economically.

Speaking to Glasgow Live about the ongoing closure of the Winter Gardens, campaigner Mairi Robertson Carrey said that examples such as the Kibble Palace show that the council could and should mend the Winter Gardens faster.

She said: “There are too many question marks over the future of the Winter Gardens. On the other hand, the Kibble Palace in the west end was restored with no questions raised at all.

“We want a restoration of the Winter Gardens not a reimagining. We don't want to see it repurposed and new ideas tested, we just want to see it mended. However, all the decisions have taken place behind closed doors. We’ve been locked out of the process.

“Such an iconic building means so much to so many people in Glasgow and deserves protection. The only real public amenity in the east end is the People’s Palace and Winter Gardens, so we can’t lose them.

“The fear is that if the council finds a way to begin charging for entrance, they could roll it out across the city. It could be a testing ground for ways to charge for Glasgow Life museums across the city as a whole.

“The east end and Winter Gardens shouldn’t be a guinea pig for these kinds of policies.”

However, a spokesperson for Glasgow City Council confirmed that the Winter Gardens will remain free of charge when they eventually reopen - though made it clear final decisions were still to be made on how the space would run in future.

A spokesperson said:“All of Glasgow’s nine civic museums, including the People’s Palace, remain free of charge. That will not change.

“There is no question that the Winter Gardens is a much loved part of the city’s heritage, but it’s detailed design will always require a substantial programme of repairs.

“The recent workshops have been about how a sustainable future could be developed for the People’s Palace and Winter Gardens.

“The focus of the work was about establishing the basic principles for the how the building may be used in future while retaining the essential character of a much loved feature of the Glasgow landscape.

“We want the people of Glasgow to be part of the discussion on the future of the People’s Palace and Winter Gardens and we will bring forward how we intend to do that in the near future.

“We are currently working to a timetable that includes the option of submitting a notice of interest in Heritage Lottery Funding by the end of October this year.”

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