A PEACE hall in the town could be a lasting memory of entrepreneur Thomas Rothschild.

Mr Rothschild hopes to build the hall in the place of the now closed public toilets at the town bridge before leaving to start a new life in Slovakia.

He said: "West Wiltshire District Council have a Vision for Trowbridge, I have a reality: it is Christianity, and the most important of the Ten Commandments, 'thou shalt not kill'.

"With this in mind I wish to build a monument for the new millennium for the hope of world peace to come."

Mr Rothschild, who is responsible for the town's distinctive Pumpkin Tower and who also owns many other buildings in the town, wants the site to combine a tourist information centre with an exhibition hall.

The site is owned by the district council and Mr Rothschild hopes to lease it in order to continue with the project.

The building itself would be two stories and designed to match others already in the area, for example featuring the same balustrades as the Pioneer Friendly Society building opposite.

To fund the project, Mr Rothschild hopes to sell the Bythesea Hotel and Pumpkin Tower.

The entrepreneur's Stone Mills, development, next to the Shires shopping centre, is not to be sold off, but will be handed over to a manger.

Mr Rothschild is due to leave the country for his new home in about three weeks' time.