A PETITION has been launched to try and secure the future of an iconic Weymouth building.

The lease of the Palm House in Weymouth is up in August and the owners say they have yet to get confirmation from Weymouth and Portland Borough Council about it being renewed.

They have launched a petition on change.org calling on the Borough Council to renew their lease, which has had more than 1,000 signatures since it began at 11pm last night.

The borough council said the Master Plan was designed to support small businesses, but said currently they had no direct tenancy agreement with the Palm House owners.

They said they were looking at their relationship with the intermediate landlord and looking into the legal situation around the tenancy and any subsequent sub-tenancy of the building.

Nigel and Vicky Duff have run the business since 2010. Mr Duff said he had invested around £125,000 in the business.

He urged people to sign the petition. Mr Duff said that under the new Master Plan the former borough council planting house was due to be demolished to make way for a new cultural centre.

Mr Duff said that the Palm House was already a cultural and community centre, hosting mums and dads groups, local artists and providing space for language classes.

Ideally they are looking for a new 10 or 20 year lease.

He said the borough council should focus on restoring empty shops and getting new businesses into the empty premises rather than ‘destroying a thriving local business.’ He said: “I’m not against the Master Plan or development. I want the Master Plan to succeed, but I want the Palm House to be at the heart of the Commercial Road/ Swannery Bridge redevelopment proposals.

“We are already here providing the facilities and paying rent and rates, providing eight jobs and supporting local food suppliers.

“We could be at the heart of redeveloping the whole lake side development.”

He added that he had lots of ideas to revamp the area and as a qualified landscape architect, he would be happy to work with the borough council and lend his skills for free to help them redevelop the lake side area.

He said: “What we aim to do with the petition is draw the borough council’s attention to the fact that this is a well-loved community facility. People love this building, it’s been here for 80 years.”

He urged people to sign up, adding: “Show your support before it’s too late.”

Chief Executive for Weymouth and Portland Borough Council, Matt Prosser, said: “The Town Centre Master Plan is an ambitious strategic plan and inevitably there will be changes, but its long-term vision supports small businesses. We’ve involved the community with the development of this plan from the outset and will continue to do so in order to deliver a better and brighter future for Weymouth.

“We recognise that the Palm House is a much-loved establishment within the community, especially among parents, but at the current time, we have no direct tenancy agreement with the Palm House owners. There is an intermediate landlord, so we are reviewing the legal situation in terms of our relationship with them, which needs to be resolved before we are able to consider any application for sub-tenancy of the building.”