A LOCAL historian has called for statues from the former Springburn Public Halls to be put on display for the people of Glasgow.

As first reported in the Evening Times, the building was demolished due to safety fears after it was found to have "significant damage".

Architectural features from the 110-year-old building have been removed – but experts fear they will not see the light of day again.

Gary Nisbet, a sculpture historian, said he first drew attention to the plight of the council-owned Springburn Halls in 2007.

At the time he claimed the building was a "tarnished jewel being left to rot" and called for something to be done about the state of the building.

His concerns come after statues from Townhead Public Library were sold to an American when that building was demolished.

Mr Nisbet said: "It is an outrage that the Springburn Halls were allowed to get to the point where they had to be knocked down so quickly.

"I believe the statues are in storage now and, with Glasgow City Council's record, I highly doubt the public will ever get to see them again.

"These fine statues show what Springburn had to give the world and the council has taken them away from Springburn.

"I just hope they don't end up suffering the same fate as the Townhead statues, which are now expensive gnomes in an Illinois garden."

Workers moved in to demolish the B-listed building over Christmas due to fears it might collapse.

The Italianate-style, red sandstone halls, built in 1912, were fenced off and surrounding roads closed.

Springburn MSP Patricia Ferguson said she was "extremely disappointed" the local authority had allowed the building to become dilapidated.

She said: "I think that the demolition has happened with unseemly haste.

"I would like to have seen more consultation about what could be done to preserve the building.

"There were a number of important architectural features, and more might have been done to save them.

"It was a listed building and there are certain responsibilities regarding that which I would like to have seen observed."

From 1960 the building was used as Springburn Sports Centre.

It was closed by Glasgow District Council in 1985 due to dry rot problems and thereafter lay empty.

In 2009 a deal to convert the building into offices and a childcare centre fell through.

A council spokesman said locals would be consulted as to what will happened to the statues.

He added: "Efforts are being made to remove and protect features, wherever it is safe to do so."

catriona.stewart@ eveningtimes.co.uk