PAISLEY Museum is to be transformed and will highlight the town’s unique heritage and textile story after being earmarked for a £4.9 million National Lottery grant.
The Renfrewshire landmark is in line for the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) award which follows £24.1mn set aside by local council for a total revamp of £42 million.
The plans are part of a wider drive to benefit Paisley’s future through investment in heritage and culture. This includes the City of Culture 2021 bid, which is expected to be submitted to the UK Government tomorrow.
The proposals hope to reconnect the “globally recognised” Paisley Pattern with the town that gave it its name.
Renfrewshire Council leader Iain Nicolson said: “This is a wonderful piece of news from HLF and couldn’t have come at a better time, with our bid to be UK City of Culture 2021 being lodged this week.
“The museum plans are central to our wider vision to transform the town’s future by harnessing the power of Paisley’s internationally significant heritage and cultural story.
“We know the town centre has its challenges but the way people shop has changed forever – so we have to create new life and new footfall by finding new ways to bring people into the town.
“Paisley can do that by making the most of the unique selling point that is our heritage and textile story – and the museum revamp, along with the museum store due to open this year and the new library will drive new footfall to our high street.”
The revamped museum, run by Renfrewshire Leisure, is forecast to attract 125,000 visits a year and provide a £72m economic boost over 30 years. It is also expected to support 138 jobs during the construction phase and the equivalent of 42 new permanent jobs through increased visitor spend.
The plans include an extension to the Victorian-era building and improvements to all four museum buildings.
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