OWNERS of Workington Opera House have been served with a notice due to fears that tiles will fall from the derelict building and injure pedestrians.

Kath Goodwin, chair of the St John’s Residents Association in Workington, said that there is a hole in the roof of the town’s old opera house, an issue addressed at the latest meeting, on Thursday December 5.

The historic derelict building stands on Ladies’ Walk, a street in Workington that has its own history. It is believed Mary Queen of Scots used the route in a visit to the town.

Kath believes the damage to the opera house is a safety concern: “A bit of high winds could lift that off and it could injure someone,” she said.

She added that the owners of the building have covered the hole with a piece of metal sheeting but the residents association is concerned that it could also fly off and injure a pedestrian.

The opera house is attached to another building and Kath believes dead animals could be in the walls between them.

“To me that’s a health hazard,” she said.

Owners of the building, PGC Demolition in Greater Manchester, have been served a notice by Allerdale Borough Council, asking them to clean up the site. Although they bought the building from the Graves family, they have previously told the Times & Star that they do not intend to do anything with the building and are hoping to sell it on.

A spokesperson for the council said: “The council has served notice under the Planning Act on the owners of the former opera house building in Ladies’ Walk, Workington.

“This live notice was served as the building was deemed to be untidy land.

“The site was also assessed as to whether it constituted a Dangerous Structure under Building Regulations but it was deemed not to be at this juncture.

“To date, the building’s owners have not carried out the work necessary to comply with the council’s planning notice. This included sealing all entry points on the Ladies’ Walk elevation. The council is now intending to prosecute the owners.”

Workington Town councillor for St John’s ward, Paul Scott said: “I would love to see something done with it, knocked down or re-developed, the town could do with a new venture.”