WE’RE?still on track was the message at the King of Prussia premises last weekend.

The Paradiso project directors were on site at the derelict Bovey Tracey pub just days after hearing news that one of their team, fellow director Tony Pearce, had died, and were able to reassure people the project was still moving forward.

‘We had plenty of people coming in to meet us and see the progress we’ve made so far, particularly investors who had heard the news about Tony,’ said director Su Kaye. ‘We were able to give them a programme update of how it is still moving forward.

‘We’ve appointed Steve Willmore as acting chairman and we’ll be holding an annual meeting later in the year to officially appoint a new chairman.’

Passers-by have so far been unable to see much of what was going on behind the main frontage of the old watering hole. But at the back of the main building, the rear of the premises have been now demolished and the ground cleared to make room for a 118-seat cinema/theatre, a cafe and art gallery with studios.

The doors of the former pub were opened on Saturday during the Green Man Festival, and the directors were able to show the public the progress made so far to convert the long-closed pub into a brand-new, bespoke centre for the arts.

Su said: ‘Some of the people had come to the festival from all over the country and were encouraged to learn there will be somewhere new to visit next time they’re in Bovey Tracey.’

Work continues tomorrow as a working party meets to sift through the mounds of building material left over after demolition.

Su explained: ‘We have a lot of wood and stone which we hope to salvage. Where possible we’ll use the old wood in the new cafe and the stone elsewhere. Anything else we’ll sell off.’

Paperwork at the planning stage has meant the opening of the new arts complex has been moved back to a more realistic November date.

‘As the King of Prussia is a listed building the planning process has taken longer than anticipated,’ said Su.

‘We are now in the process of applying for a large number of grants, so we are still moving forward.

‘Excitingly, we are now hoping to open the centre in its entirety, all in one go, and not as a phased opening as originally planned.’