History
A toll-booth/town hall and market has been located in the Market Place since the 17th century. After the original toll booth building became decayed and unsuitable, it was demolished and in 1788 the then Lord of the Manor, Nathaniel Cholmley commissioned Jonathan Pickernell of Whitby to design the Old Town Hall as we know today.
An outdoor market still takes place within Whitby market place and the undercroft of the old town hall building to this present day. However, the building is in a poor state of repair and the first floor has not been occupied or used since 2017.
The Project
This project aims to deliver improvements to Whitby’s Old Town Hall & Market Place, which are Grade II* Listed and an iconic part of the town’s heritage. We will repair & restore the building to secure its structural integrity and improve the appearance of this unique heritage asset for Whitby. The available floor space in both the first floor & undercroft will be repurposed to provide year-round community and cultural activities and we will improve the market place area through landscaping
The aims of the project are to:
- Build on the history and heritage of the old town hall building and market place by repairing & restoring the building to secure its structural integrity and improve the appearance of this unique heritage asset for Whitby
- Restore the old town hall building a key focal point for Whitby through refurbishment and repurposing the building for community use, creating 112sqm of floorspace to ensure the building is sustainable and income-generating in the long term.
- Create a vibrant and bustling year round market place, with 81sqm of improved quality of public realm and improved facilities for market traders, driving an increase in footfall and dwell times.