Lye Cricket Club bowled over by £70k revamp after building gutted
A cricket pavilion left gutted by a severe fire is to reopen later this month following a £70,000 restoration project.
Arsonists struck at Lye Cricket Club, in Stourbridge Road, last August leaving the inside of the £230,000 building a burned-out shell.
But just six months later the site has been restored to its former glory with new fittings and furniture now in place.
It will be officially opened at a special celebration event taking place on February 28, featuring live music and food.
Officials today said they were 'delighted' the project had been completed but admitted it had been a lot of hard work.
Spokesman Jake Hanson, who has led the restoration project, said: "It has been a jam-packed couple of months but to see the pavilion restored is brilliant.
"The way it looks now you would never tell there had been a fire at all. The pavilion has been restored to its former glory in plenty of time for the new season as we hoped.
"Although it was utterly heartbreaking to see the pavilion following the fire we were quite lucky in one way.
"Although the inside was burned out the structure of the pavilion was still sound so we did not have to rebuild it from scratch.
"We hope members of the club and visitors will like the work we have done."
As part of the £70,000 scheme, which was covered by insurance, the interior of the pavilion was completely stripped and repairs carried out on the roof.
New wiring also had to be installed in the building and the inside plastered and completely redecorated.
The re-opening celebration will begin at 8pm.
