People will have chance to look round a landmark Huddersfield building that faces demolition.
Dalton Grange is owned by Syngenta and the Leeds Road company says it may look impressive but it needs a vast amount of money spending on it.
The firm is footing the bills for business rates, power, heating, water, insurance and costly repairs and maintenance.
But it is run as a wedding venue by Mike and Kim Dean who claim to have an agreement with the now-defunct Syngenta Social Club which previously controlled the building.
Syngenta say that without its permission, the former social club which was wound up in 2012 due to lack of members allowed the Deans in 2011 to “use the premises for private trading solely to their own account, which included renting out rooms and running a private hospitality and wedding venue.”
Syngenta wants to flatten the site off Bradley Mills Road, Rawthorpe, but residents and heritage group the Victorian Society have expressed outrage.
And now there are well over 1,000 signatures in support of the appeal against its demolition. These are on the Dalton Grange Facebook page.
There will be an open day this Saturday, July 4, from 1pm until 9pm for the general public and those who have signed up as Friends of Dalton Grange. It will be a family day with a bar and refreshments and all are welcome.
Richard Heath who has been campaigning to save Dalton Grange said: “It might be of particular interest to those who have only managed to catch a glimpse of the former mansion at a distance – a view that can easily leave one with the impression of it being a kind of ‘strange and foreboding place hidden behind the trees.’
“Gladly it’s very much the opposite and a surprise awaits those who have never had the opportunity to visit the house and explore its interior. For some, this fine Victorian structure promises to be a ‘mystery revealed`.
“As well as being a museum-like stately home, the building offers a warm, interactive and friendly atmosphere and one that encompasses a wealth of history that is captured in its ornate architecture style.”
