More than £100,000 is to be spent on carrying out external renovations at Moot Hall in Keswick.
The board of Battersby Hall Trust, which owns the historic building, met this week to approve the work. The repairs will include repointing of much of the south tower, as well as repainting all guttering and woodwork with woodworm treatment where necessary.
“We know there is a rotten purlin in the roof area which will need to be replaced,” said trust chairman Tony Lywood.
“There is also the possibility that the corner stones and sandstone blocks will have the paint removed by steam cleaning and be left unpainted. This seems to be the preference of the conservation team,” he added.
Work will begin in March and will require scaffolding but the market will still be able to continue.
Work will stop on Thursdays and Saturdays for the market.
There will also be an inspection and repair of the weather vane at the top of the tower.
It appears to have an anchor on it, possibly a reference to London’s Greenwich Hospital, which once owned the whole area.
Mr Lywood added: “The repairs to Moot Hall are long overdue and Battersby Hall charity intend to carry them out to a standard that Keswick can be proud of.
“We will try to keep the disruption to a minimum. Ideally I would have liked the repairs over the winter but the lime putty historically required for pointing cannot be used in very cold weather.
“We must remember that Moot Hall is the most iconic and historic building in our town and deserves to be treated with dignity and care.
“Now back in local ownership, we hope to do exactly that.”
