The council chamber at County Hall, Dorchester will be used again.
Some senior councillors have been pressing for a return to the purpose-built chamber after problems with the meeting rooms at South Walks House, including noise from air conditioning, poor wi-fi connectivity and not the public not being able to hear, or see, councillors on occasions.
A story on May 9 “Want a council chamber? Dorset has one to spare” highlighted how Dorset Council, at that time, had no plans to use the room.
This week council chairman Cllr Pauline Batstone confirmed that the authority would be using the chamber for the next meeting of the 82-member council on Thursday July 18 at 6.30pm.
How that goes will then be reviewed by members and officers before deciding whether the purpose-built chamber should be used again.
Since the formation of the Dorset Council, in May, the chamber has had little use although a planning public inquiry into the Westleaze development at Charminster hired the room for part of this week. It is also occasionally used for staff meetings and training and is, from time to time, hired out to outside organisations.
The majority of meetings scheduled so far for the new council are being held at South Walks House the former West Dorset District Council headquarters, with northern area planning meetings being held at the Exchange, Sturminster Newton and Purbeck applications at Westport House, Wareham.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here