We reported last month on centre chairman Bill McQueen's forecast that the centre would only be able to survive for six months if its £56,000 annual grant from the Big Lottery Fund, due to cease in May 2010, were not replaced.
But Mr McQueen told
BCC's June meeting this week that the reserves built up to see the centre through those six months would be eaten up by redundancy payments to staff if the facility were forced to close down.
"When we run out of lottery funding next May, that will be it," he warned.
"Since the last meeting I've realised that the three paid members of staff will be entitled to redundancy payments, and that will mean we no longer have the money to keep going for another six months."
However, all may not yet be lost, and preliminary talks are already planned to explore the possibility of the centre entering a range of 'service level agreements', whereby the facility will be paid for offering a service not offered by another public sector organisation.
"The Department of Work and Pensions has already made us an 'associate office'," Mr McQueen continued.
"They've stopped the Rothesay JobCentre - which is now no longer a JobCentre Plus - from doing everything that doesn't involve people looking for jobs. They've saved four members of staff as a result.
"But who is doing the work? Everyone looking for help with anything else is now sent down to us. We have a whole team of people now who are dealing with people sent down to us by the JobCentre. We've lost an interview room because of it.
"Clearly we are picking up work from all these organisations that are saving money, and nobody is paying us to do it all.
"I think service level agreements are the only way forward."
And Mr McQueen warned that the effect of the centre's closure on the economy of Bute wouldn't be limited to direct job losses.
"There is £1.5 million of debt on Bute," he said, "and we have helped people get access to more than half a million pounds in benefits for the good of the island. That would be a horrendous loss."
