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The CCA Glasgow is on a financial ‘knife edge’ with an official re-opening date still to be confirmed by Glasgow City Council.

The city’s Centre for Contemporary Arts has remained closed since the devastating fire which destroyed the neighbouring Glasgow School of Art on June 15.

Some locals in the area were finally allowed to return to their homes and businesses on August 24, two months on from the blaze. The CCA understood that they would be allowed to return on September 14.

However staff at the centre state that they were told yesterday by Glasgow City Council that the risk to the CCA building from Glasgow School of Art ‘has not changed significantly’ and that they are still waiting on a report from structural engineers, who carried out an inspection on August 23.

They will not be granted access to the venue until the council have approved mitigation measures and inspected the completed works.

Glasgow City Council told Glasgow Live that they have never provided the CCA with an official move-in date - but, as CCA director Francis McKee explained, a lack of communication has heightened their sense of frustration.

(Image: Facebook - CCA Glasgow)

The centre as a whole is also teetering on ‘a knife edge’, with no commercial income coming in. Creative Scotland have provided support but the CCA has still to receive money from the £5m Fire Recovery Fund announced by the Scottish Government in July.

“It’s the sheer vagueness around it,” Francis told Glasgow Live. “It’s basically an indefinite closure with no schedule and no dates. That’s a problem for our insurers for example. The cafe desperately need a date for re-entry for our insurers, for them to continue to support them. We don’t have that.

“We are in the position this week where we have to decide if we cancel September. We have a sell out gig on the 14th, which we were assured we would be in in time for. We have a memorial service on the 16th for a lecturer who died recently in the art community. That will have to be cancelled as we just cannot make any guarantees.

“Financially we are on a knife edge. We have no income and the grant we receive from Creative Scotland only covers so much while commercial income covers the rest. Our cash flow is down to a minimum.”

The uncertainty and disruption has angered locals, particularly those who were locked out of their homes and said that they had received very little direct support from Glasgow City Council as they were forced to move into emergency accommodation. Some attempted to breach the fencing and barriers to gain access to their cars and flats and were held back by Police and security. Others are weighing up legal action.

(Image: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

The CCA has been measured in its public statements to date but Francis admits patience is wearing thin.

“There is anger and frustration in that there was a lot of help for and communication with the tenants on Dalhousie Street, which was right and fair. They and some of the other businesses have been able to move back in. There was an incredible amount of concern, but it’s almost as if it’s all over. People have vanished.

“There is no communication. No one is sitting down with us. They sit down with the School of Art each day but they don’t communicate with us or seem to understand the impact or care. There is a feeling of contempt really, coming from the city.”

While other premises in the area have re-opened the CCA remains closed due to the fact that while their entrance is on Sauchiehall Street, the building extends up Scott Street - an area still classed as being at risk.

Some have vented their frustration at the Art School over the past two months but McKee explained: “In this instance the issue lies with the City Council.

(Image: 2018 Getty Images)

“Glasgow School of Art has been very neighbourly towards us. They are constantly trying to keep us informed - which is in stark contrast to the city.

“All we want is a conversation with the city, not a blank refusal and indefinite dates. We want to sit down and have a common sense, human conversation about what could be done, what the problems are and what we can or can’t solve.

“We can’t get the news directly from Glasgow City Council. We are getting news directly from the School of Art or from teams on site. They have not sat down with us to tell us the situation directly and you can’t run business like that.”

The CCA’s closure continues to have a major impact on Glasgow’s arts community with artists, who would normally be able to use their space free of charge, forced to move elsewhere and in some cases raise funds to cover costs.

The centre itself has been forced to cancel 115 events, including an exhibition which cost £22,000 and that “no one has ever seen.”

Francis added: “We had a schedule worked out to re-enter on the 14th but that will have to change. We are losing everything all over again.”

(Image: Media Scotland)

With two major fires having now closed large swathes of Sauchiehall Street and major roadworks still ongoing as part of a £7.2m redevelopment, businesses in the area are struggling.

Cardboard signs have been posted around the city centre reminding Glaswegians and tourists that ‘Sauchiehall Street is open for business’ but footfall has fallen dramatically and with few pedestrians passing through cordoned zones, the reality appears to be very different.

“Bo Concept have moved to the Merchant City. They are not coming back. The steak restaurant across from us has closed and is not coming back. They are not the only ones and the ones that are coming back are struggling.”

Francis added: “The footfall is minimal. It’s dead now and that’s one of the reasons why we are now pushing (for a timeframe).

“We are like an engine in the middle of the street here, we can actually drive that (footfall) and bring people into the area. We are one of the top 20 venues in Scotland, visited by 340,000 people every year. That is significant in terms of helping Sauchiehall Street.

“We have to be honest and communicate as much as possible and say that we are trying to find out as much as we can on a daily basis. That’s really as much as we can do. We can’t make any guarantees and we have to be honest about that.”

Glasgow City Council told Glasgow Live: “In July, The Glasgow School of Art began work to stabilise and dismantle sections at of the Mackintosh building that were at risk of imminent and sudden collapse. They estimated the work would take eight weeks, ending this week.

“As this work progressed, the council was able to relax the safety cordon at the east and southern sides of the building – allowing access to Dalhousie Street and parts of Sauchiehall Street for the first time since the fire.

“The council has been unable to and has not confirmed a date for reoccupation at the west end of the site, around Scott Street. However, some businesses have advised the council that The Glasgow School of Art has, privately, told them that they would be able to return by September 14.

“Earlier today, The Glasgow School of Art’s engineers told the council that work at the west end of the site, at Scott Street, is not complete and they could not commit to a date when it will be completed.

“They agreed with experts from building standards that the building remains unsafe.

“The council’s priority has always been to get residents and businesses safely back to their properties. As soon as The Glasgow School of Art makes sufficient progress on site to allow us to identify a safe re-entry date, the remaining displaced businesses will be the first to know.”

On the subject of the Fire Recovery Fund payment a spokesperson for the Scottish Government said: “CCA already receives significant public funding as an arts organisation, meaning that more time is needed to process their application for money from this fund.

“We recognise the very important work which CCA carries out and we will seek to resolve this application as soon as possible.”