Houston Village Hall could be declared a “surplus asset” and sold on the open market by Renfrewshire Council.

The sandstone building, which dates from the late 19th century, is currently unoccupied.

At a meeting of the infrastructure, land and environment policy board being held on Wednesday, councillors will be asked to deem the two-storey building, in Main Street, surplus to requirements and authorise Alasdair Morrison, the local authority’s head of economy and development, to advertise it for sale.

The property has a main hall on the upper floor and various smaller meeting rooms, as well as toilet and kitchen facilities and a small extension.

It was used by the Church of the Nazarene from June 2011 until April last year, according to a report prepared by the council, and sub-leased to various community groups during that period.

In 2010, a survey of the building found it was in need of around £180,000 of investment over a 20-year period for it to remain fit for occupation.

The council said the level of investment needed in the property makes the prospect of a community asset transfer – where responsibility for an asset transfers from the local authority to a community group or voluntary organisation – a “difficult route.”

While this was initially considered and then rejected on cost grounds by one organisation, there have been no other requests.

The report added that the council does not have dedicated funds to invest in the long-term sustainability of the hall and is not aware of any local group or organisation that does.

Officers believe this would best be achieved by selling on the open market with a development brief which identifies factors that must be considered when preparing proposals for the site.

The building is within Houston’s conservation area but is not listed.