The fate of the Volunteer Hall was the subject of a meeting held in the town's White Swan Hotel last Thursday evening.
Representatives from a whole host of local user groups packed out the venue, including those from the Ex Reivers Association, Duns & District Country Dancing, Duns Operatic Society, Berwickshire Carpet Bowling Association and Duns Masonic Lodge.
All are angry that the hall could be closed for good at the end of the year following Scottish Borders Council's decision not to renew their lease on the building which expires in December.
The council are keen for community organisations to make use of the facilities housed in the new Berwickshire High School but a recent tour of the premises left many unsatisfied with the alternatives they were offered.
General concerns about the size of the school's main hall and the fact that the catering facilties are downstairs were raised as well as ones relating to specific groups.
Stuart Renton, chairman of Duns Ex-Reivers Association, chaired last week's meeting and said the strength of opposition to the council's decision was there for all to see.
"There was a very good turnout and I was delighted than so many people came along. Everyone is disappointed that the council are turning their backs on what is such an important building for the town.
"As far as we are concerned 'school's out'. The new high school is an impressive building but it doesn't meet many groups' needs.
"If there is a slim chance that the council will change their minds about the hall we have to do everything we can to get our point across.
"There are petitions in shops around Duns at the moment and the one I saw in Finnies had four or five pages worth of signatures and that was after just a few days.
"We're hoping to hold a public meeting in the Volunteer Hall in the coming weeks to discuss the matter further and the idea of a protest is also strong in our minds. The council shouldn't be allowed to rob the town of such a valuable and well-used facility. Is it a case of the community being short changed again?"
The possibility of the user groups taking over the lease on the hall was discussed although all agreed that this should be a last resort. The building costs in the region of £30,000 to run per year although its income is substantially less at around £11,000.
If the community were to take over the lease it would cost around £2,500 but grants would be available and they would be exempt from paying rates, which would save in the region of £6,380.
The Volunteer Hall is owned by the Lowland Reserve Forces and Cadets Association and its deputy chief executive Michael Knox said that if a local body put a case together, the organisation would be happy to work together with them to safeguard the future of the hall.
"I have been contacted by a number of individuals from groups in Duns and the community support is obviously there. What the association needs is a single point of contact we can deal with, whether this be one organisation or a group made up of a number of representatives.
"The Volunteer Hall has served the cadets well and no-one wants to lose it."
Mid Berwickshire councillor, Donald Moffat attended last week's meeting and he said he felt "everyone had been misled" by Scottish Borders Council and added that it was wrong that they made a decision on the hall prior to any consultation with the community.
He told those present that the council were going to review their position in six months as council policy doesn't allow them to reverse a decision within this period.
He urged concerned residents to "bombard" both councillors and SBC chief executive, David Hume, with letters because the Volunteer Hall is the biggest of its kind in Berwickshire and therefore "the minds of councillors have to be changed."
Following the meeting, a spokesperson for Scottish Borders Council said: "The council is taking very seriously the views expressed by members of the local community in relation to the decision not to renew the lease of the Volunteer Hall in Duns.
"The council did negotiate the lease of the hall to be extended to the end of 2009 to ensure all users had the opportunity to find alternative accommodation either in the new high school or other venues in and around the town – if they needed to. We are actively examining with other potential partners, the possibility of continuing the use of the hall by the public. A decision will be made well before December as to whether any organisation or group is able to continue leasing the property from the Ministry of Defence."