Talks are taking place on a potential £200,000 being made available for young people's projects in Largs.

The money would come from the sale of the sale of the former Helter Skelter youth club and teenage cafe on the seafront. 

The Gallowgate Street building was purchased last summer by Gordon Craig, owner of restaurant chain Tinto Tapas, who has received the green light from North Ayrshire Council planners for a new eatery at the site which will seat up to 42 people.

North Coast councillor Alan Hill told the News: "The funds from the sale of the building are held in the Helter Skelter account.  I am having a meeting with the chair of the trust this week to look towards putting the funding into something which will meet the aims of the group and the young people of town.

"The figure in the account is in excess of £100,000 - and the monies will be spent on projects for the benefit of young people.

"It will only really be taken forward with taking onboard the views of the young people in the town and there are various options on that going forward.

"I think any decision making on the spending of money on youth projects would have to actually involve the young people themselves as part of the decision making process to find out what they would actually like to see."

Councillor Hill is chair of the North Coast Locality Planning Partnership (NCLPP), which is involved in making decisions on funding for the likes of Largs Common Good Fund.

He said the Locality Partnership could be a possible vehicle to help in the process of distributing the cash from the Helter Skelter account.

A cost-of-living funding group is being set up by Cllr Hill which includes community groups, Largs Academy head teacher John Doherty, and representatives from Largs Thistle FC - and it's thought this, too, could be involved in decisions on how to spend the Helter Skelter cash.

Cllr Hill added: "Of course, if if a well presented application is made to a lottery group or funding organisation, there is every possibility that that £100,000 could be doubled to £200,000 to benefit youths and local children through match funding. That would be quite a tidy sum which could potentially take on a few different projects in which to benefit local youngsters."

Cllr Hill pointed out that the original Helter Skelter had video and computer gaming facilities for teens, which are much more readily accessible now than in years gone by.

He has suggested a community radio station might be one possible avenue for young people to get involved in.

The NCLPP was also heavily involved in the £100,000 Mackerston skate park development, which has been a major success since its completion.

Cllr Hill said he hoped the funds from the sale of the building could be used in keeping with the ideals of the Helter Skelter facility, which was opened in 1999.

The centre was opened by the late Christine McAulay, who was a former head teacher at Kelburn Primary, and Margaret Nicholson.

However, it has lain vacant for years, with fears recently raised about the safety and poor condition of the building.

The two-floor building used to have a cafe, games room and recording studio and was run by a local committee - including parent volunteers - over the years with many Largs individuals and groups also carrying out fund-raising to support the centre.

Under Mr Craig's plans, the upper floor of the building will be used as a residential apartment, with fire and sound protection installed between the floors to separate the flat above from the restaurany below.

The first floor renovation plans include a new kitchen and bathroom upstairs, as well as minor internal alterations.