MUSEUM UP FOR SALE WITH £3M PRICE TAG

THE home of the former River & Rowing Museum in Henley is for sale with a guide price of £3 million.

The sale, which was listed yesterday (Thursday), is being handled by American commercial real estate services company CBRE.

The 35,688 sq ft building was designed by the modernist architect Sir David Chipperfield and opened by the late Queen Elizabeth II in 1998.

The structure has won awards, including the Royal Fine Art Commission Building of the Year award in 1999 and the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) National Award in the same year.

The museum’s foundation trust made the decision to shut down the operation in July, citing rising costs and is working with Oxfordshire agent Richard Venables to find a suitable buyer.

The building is designed in two different parts and is linked by a glass and concrete footbridge, with
78 parking spaces and it has a D energy rating.

While its three large galleries are in the process of being cleared and dismantled, the building’s office spaces are currently occupied by the
foundation as it continues to wind down the operation. Part of the second building has been let as self-contained office suites.

The property is held on a long leasehold interest, and the sale will be subject to VAT.

The building currently has planning permission for use for learning and non-residential institutions (Class F1) and part use for offices (Class E), however, other uses may be possible subject to planning.

None of the museums 35,000 objects are included in the sale, and are in the process of being rehomed by the few remaining museum employees following the closure in September.

Interim director Kevin Sandhu said that the sale of the building could see the potential for a version of the museum to remain in the town.

He said: “We ourselves are focused on if we can support a new museum that would almost certainly be smaller.

“So a new owner for this building that could generate the type of income that could make it viable would be fantastic.”

Mr Sandhu said that several interested parties had already made enquiries and had looked around the building.

The site sits on land owned by Henley Town Council and has a 68-year lease.

Mr Sandhu said that while he would like to see the space as something that could be used by the community, they needed to assess the appetite of the market. He said: “I think lots of people will have strong personal views on it, which I totally understand and respect because, for a long time, it has served the community.

“I think if it ended up being something that was still used by the community, I think that would be a really good outcome.

“But, of course, we do live in times where there are commercial necessities and unfortunately, as a museum, it hasn’t been able to be commercially viable.

“Of course, being very self-focused, if [the sale] meant that foundation could go on and deliver its objectives in some other way, then I think that would be a win all around.”

Mr Sandhu said that a priority was ensuring that the sale ensured the foundation trust was able to support it’s future operations.

He said: “If we were to generate significant funds, that would give us a much stronger level of resource to continue our charitable objects which are the provision of education and museum learning around the collections of river, rowing and Henley.”

Mr Sandhu said that while the building’s design which was inspired by river boathouses, was “iconic” however, its size was something of a “double-edged sword.”

He said: “The galleries are huge spaces and really impressive spaces, but it would depend on the type of use.

“Having that space is slightly a double-edged sword because it costs quite a lot in terms of energy costs and to cool it. It’s so iconic, it’s so eye-catching and yet there are operating costs associated with having something so large.”

He added that some of the building’s plant and machinery, which was put in nearly 30 years ago, was dated.

In October 2022 the museum underwent a £1.1 million refurbishment project, which closed the building for nine months to fix it’s leaking roof, heating, electrical and cooling systems and refitted its shop and café.

The museum, which is a charity, had relied on interest from an £8.5million endowment by Sir Martyn Arbib, founder of the Perpetual fund management company, to cover its operational costs. But, as its deficits increased, including the building work, compounded with the rise in national insurance contributions and with low footfall, it struggled to keep its doors open.

Mr Sandhu said that the new format of the museum was still in its “early days” but that it’s education arm had begun to take on some bookings.

He said: “We are building up the book for next year in terms of school visits.

“In terms of the museum objects, we’ve returned quite a few of our loaned objects but we’re still working through our policies and procedures to make sure that if further disposals of accessioned objects they are done in a very strictly controlled, documented and transparent way.”

Mr Sandhu said that the museum continued to work closely with the town council, the landowner.

He said: “Almost certainly any new occupier will need to have a kind of deed of variation.

“Of course, Henley Town Council are our landlord and so would become the landlord. So they’re aware at this stage and we just need to consider what appetite is out there.”

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