A CRUCIAL council meeting this evening will see the final decision taken on plans to sell the Theatre Royal for £1, and on cuts to bus services in the city.

In its first meeting of 2015, the City of York Council’s cabinet will meet at 5.30pm to approve plans for the theatre and bus subsidies, and to hear updates on equalities work in York.

Under the plans for the Theatre Royal, first made public on Christmas Eve, the historic venue could be sold to the York Conservation Trust for a nominal sum to safeguard the building for the future.

The 270-year-old building, which is due to close for a major refurbishment in the next few months, faces growing repair bills and the cabinet papers show that the plan to sell to the trust would relieve the council of its liabilities for the venue, while the trust has said it considers its role to be in guarding York’s heritage.

Council officers have already supported the plan, and assistant directors Tracey Carter and Charlie Croft have recommended that cabinet members vote to sell to YCT, rather than keep hold of the theatre or sell it on the open market.

At the same meeting, bus subsidy cuts which could lead to a major reduction in evening and weekend services could be agreed.

The proposals have been drawn up to help the council make the £200,000 in savings the city council needs to find from its bus subsidy bill in 2015/16.

The report says they focus on the least used services in the network and list a number services - mainly evening and weekend routes - which could be reduced or axed completely.

The routes 10, 14, 16a, 20, 27 and 36 are all in the line for changes - and further suggestions include increasing fares on some school services to save another £16,000.

On top of this, councillors will be asked to start a public consultation about changing the criteria for bus subsidies to help save more money - with the result that it could lead to further bus service cuts.

Also on the agenda is an update on York’s Equalities Scheme, and a scrutiny review of equalities by a specially formed task group.

Among the recommendations is a suggestion the newly elected ward councillors should be given training to help them understand the demographic make-up of their areas; and the council make better use of community hubs and university facilities to reach diverse groups.