The Dunedin City Council bought the building in 2017 and little activity has happened there since.
Cr Jim O’Malley said he and a few other people had been pushing the idea of a trust being set up to take over Sammy’s once the council had done necessary building repairs.
The Crawford St building could be sold to such a trust, he suggested.
Cr O’Malley said the council did not have the budget for a significant project, but Sammy’s was of particular interest to a few people who wanted to do something with it.
The future of Sammy’s was raised at a Dunedin Area Citizens Association meeting last week.
Cr O’Malley was not there, but musician Ollie Charlesworth attended.
Mr Charlesworth said Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich suggested the council was "looking to sell" and had received some interest.
Mr Radich could not be reached for comment.
Council property services group manager Anna Nilsen said staff were working on a report about the condition of the building and potential options.
It was intended this would come before councillors by the end of the year.
The council bought the building in 2017 to ensure it would not be demolished.
Former mayor Aaron Hawkins was a councillor at the time and he said then it would have been "an absolute travesty had it been sold and bowled, but now it’s safe for another generation of artists and audiences to enjoy".
However, it was identified as a hazardous space because of the presence of asbestos and some structural issues.
Cr Brent Weatherall said former council chief executive Sue Bidrose acquired Sammy’s, "having been urged to do so by Aaron Hawkins without having to seek council approval, and the city has been paying the price ever since".
"My opinion is that [the] council simply needs to demolish the building at considerable cost, lick its wounds and possibly create car parking to slowly recover the costs incurred to date," Cr Weatherall said.
Mr Hawkins said the councillor was, "as ever, a font of imagination".
Preserving the building benefited the wider precinct and it was then worth holding on to as an option for performing arts infrastructure after the demise of the Fortune Theatre company.
"It’s since become obvious that there are better options," he said.
Buying Sammy’s still made sense at the time.
Sammy’s was a significant piece of Dunedin social history and Mr Hawkins indicated he would like to see it retained in community ownership.
Advertisement
