Plans to turn a listed building into a sculpture garden in Brighstone have been submitted to the Isle of Wight Council.
Elmlea, a Grade II listed cottage off Warnes Lane in Brighstone, would be open to the public as a sculpture garden and heritage building.
Carefully curated
Sculptures would be curated, produced and displayed in the cottage and its gardens.
The application said opening times would be carefully considered to avoid overcrowding.
School caretaker’s lifelong home
The building, which has been listed since 2009, was the lifelong home of Brighstone primary school caretaker Lucy Trickett until she died last year aged 94.
Her parents, Edith and Harry, owned the property before her. The building was purchased in May 2018 and much of the interior and furniture has been preserved.
Plans for the change of use and some renovation works were submitted by Karen Grainger.
Family support the plans
There is a wood-built chalet cottage outside the building called The Woodpeckers.
It was the home of Lucy’s brother, Archie Trickett, until he died aged 89 in 2011, but his wife Betty still lives there.
The application said Betty and her daughters are aware and supportive of the plans.
Soft opening Spring 2020
It said a lot of work is still to be done, but a ‘soft’ opening date of Spring 2020 is proposed.
The open season would run from Easter to the end of October.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may be been made by OnTheWight. Ed
