THE Onion Collective is set to host a launch party their new cultural venue in September. Work is progressing well on East Quay in Watchet, with the team hoping to have a main launch party on the afternoon of Friday, September 3. This will be followed by a fun day on Saturday, September 4. However, the venue will be open before this - with a soft launch planned for the beginning of the summer holidays. “As a social enterprise, East Quay will support creative practitioners,” said a spokesperson for the Onion Collective. “It will bring national and international artists to the South West and it will provide space for people to gather, imagine, talk and plan a future they want to be part of.”
East Quay, which overlooks the marina in Watchet, is being developed by the Onion Collective. The Onion Collective, a social enterprise, was set up in 2013 when plans for a major development of flats on the marina had fallen through. The group has since built a visitor centre, restored boat museum, created a community garden from a derelict field, built a pavilion with 50 volunteers and started a project called Watchet Community Makers. And now they are in the process of building the East Quay development on the quayside. Georgie Grant, co-director of the Onion Collective, said they are looking forward to welcoming people into this new space.