Agenda item

To consider the report of the Director Finance.

Agreed:

RECOMMENDED that Council agree a demolition budget equal to the Land Release Funding received by the Department for Levelling up Housing andCommunities and One Public Estate.

RESOLVED that

(1)   the Director Finance be authorised to dispose of all or part of the land at Mary Arches Street Car Park, as shown on the site boundary plan in Appendix 1 of the report, to Exeter City Living, on terms to be negotiated by the City Surveyor at a sum that represented no less than the best value valuation, if the option granted in respect of the land is exercised;

(2)   the City Surveyor be authorised to acquire by way of Compulsory Purchase Order (“CPO”) any third party proprietary interests within the site;

(3)   the Director Finance be authorised to close Mary Arches Street Car Park on the grounds of economic obsolescence at the appropriate time in the development process;

(4)   the demolition of MASCP be agreed utilising Brownfield Land Release Fund (“BLRF”) monies received from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (“DLUHC”) and One Public Estate (“OPE”);

(5)   that redevelopment of the site for a residential led mixed use scheme comprising new homes and ancillary ground floor commercial uses be agreed with the granting of over sailing licences if required;

(6)   the Director Finance be granted delegated authority in consultation with the Portfolio Holder to agree the final boundary of the land to be disposed of (noting that the area is not to be greater than the land indicated at Appendix 1 of the report);

(7)   the Director Finance be authorised to take all necessary steps to secure the making, submission, confirmation and implementation of a Compulsory Purchase Order to acquire any third party proprietary interests within the site (see Appendix 1 of the report);

(8)   the Director Finance be authorised to issue all relevant notices and certificates in connection with the making, confirmation and implementation of any Compulsory Purchase Order;

(9)   the Director Finance be authorised to acquire third party proprietary interests by private treaty negotiation;

(10)       the Director Finance be authorised to dispose of any third party propriety interest acquired pursuant to the Compulsory Purchase Order to Exeter City Living in accordance with terms to be agreed;

(11)       the Director Finance be authorised to make General Vesting Declarations (GVDs) under the Compulsory Purchase (Vesting Declarations) Act 1981 and/or serve notices to treat and notices of entry (if required) following confirmation of a Compulsory Purchase Order by the Secretary of State;

(12)       the Director Finance be authorised to issue and serve any warrants to obtain possession of property acquired by the Council following the execution of a General Vesting Declarations or service of a notice of entry if it was considered appropriate to do so;

(13)       the Director Finance be granted delegated authority in consultation with the Leader of the Council, to agree the final procurement contracts; and

(14)       the City Surveyor be granted delegated authority to work with Exeter City Living to facilitate the regeneration of this strategic city centre site.

Reason for Decision: As set out in the report.

The Executive received the report on the Mary Arches Street Car Park (MASCP) to option the site to Exeter City Living, close the car park, to secure vacant possession, to demolish the car park using Central Government Funding and redevelop the site for a residential led mixed use development.

Particular reference was made to:-

·        the car park was not in good condition and maintaining it would involve a significant investment of £3.8 million to refurbish the site to a reasonable standard. This would be difficult for the Council, with interest rates increasing and a likely reduction in the Capital Programme. If Members were minded to not proceed, there would be a loss from Central Government funding and additional expenditure for the Council;

·        there was a complication from the secure tenancies of commercial tenants who were located within the boundary. If negotiation was unsuccessful, then a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) would be required. A request for an additional budget would be brought forward and likely be funded from the Guildhall income, to cover the costs of the required legal support;

·        the final disposal delegation requested in the report would be limited to within the boundary and the final size of the disposal would be included within the negotiations with Exeter City Living; and

·        there were challenges related to archaeological interests located beneath the carpark and would likely not be disposed of for residential use depending on negotiation around the red line boundary.

Councillor Jobson, as an opposition group leader, spoke on this item and asked the following questions:-

·        Was the funding provided by the Government specifically for demolition and had the application been made?

·        Would the built homes be social/affordable homes or would development sale receipts include help to buy or similar schemes or be sold on open market?

·        Could clarification be given that no co-living/student buildings would be built on site and that developments would be homes for families?

·        Why was the car park being closed so soon and could it not remain open longer to generate income until end of school summer holidays in 2023.

Councillor D. Moore, as an opposition group leader, spoke on this item and agreed there was a compelling case for re-developing the site and asked the following questions:-

·        Would the Compulsory Purchase Order potentially include the residential properties adjacent to the Mecca building, which were outside the boundary and could they be included?

·        Could the access rights be confirmed for the two residential properties next to the Mecca building would not be compromised or lost due to the disposal of the asset, from any Compulsory Purchase Order or redevelopment?

·        When would the Grant require the funding to be spent by? and

·        Could the Council guarantee that the car park would not be demolished until the new scheme was ready to proceed?

During the discussion, a Member highlighted that the re-development would support the reduction of city car parking and encourage the use of sustainable travel. The Solar Array referred to in the report, was one of the first car park canopy arrays in the country and would be relocated to an appropriate site.

In response to the questions raised, the Director Finance and the Leader explained:-

·        there would not be purpose-built student accommodation built on City Council owned land and that the site was subject to the normal planning and consultation process;

·        the current development proposals from Exeter City Living were based on apartment schemes, which were targeting the rental market and would be both affordable for the HRA and open market;

·        the Brownfield Land Release Fund (BLRF) funding £1.3 million grant application bid was made on 1 June 2021 and the Funding Agreement was dated 16th September 2021;

·        the £1.3 million grant application, covered the cost of £635,000 for Demolition and Asbestos Removal, £600,000 for Piling and £75,000 for the Substation;

·        the Exeter City Living Business Plan which was approved in February 2022 set out the intention of the site for affordable homes;

·        there was no specific closure date for the car park and was dependant on the agreement, finalising the timetable for site closure and monitoring the safety of the car park;

·        there was no current intention to include properties outside of the indicative red line boundary;

·        any legal access or rights of way would be protected or realigned as part of the site development process;

·        the Grant required the land transfer to be completed by 31 March 2024; and

·        there was no fixed date stipulated for demolition. If there was any gap between demolition and the commencement of the development, the Council would seek to find an alternative use for the land.

The Leader highlighted that there would be a consultation process and additional questions could be raised at the appropriate time. He also advised that the responses to the submitted questions would also be made in writing outside of the meeting.

RECOMMENDED that Council agree a demolition budget equal to the Land Release Funding received by the Department for Levelling up Housing andCommunities and One Public Estate.

RESOLVED that

(1)   the Director Finance be authorised to dispose of all or part of the land at Mary Arches Street Car Park, as shown on the site boundary plan in Appendix 1 of the report, to Exeter City Living, on terms to be negotiated by the City Surveyor at a sum that represented no less than the best value valuation, if the option granted in respect of the land is exercised;

(2)   the City Surveyor be authorised to acquire by way of Compulsory Purchase Order (“CPO”) any third-party proprietary interests within the site;

(3)   the Director Finance be authorised to close Mary Arches Street Car Park on the grounds of economic obsolescence at the appropriate time in the development process;

(4)   the demolition of MASCP be agreed utilising Brownfield Land Release Fund (“BLRF”) monies received from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (“DLUHC”) and One Public Estate (“OPE”);

(5)   that redevelopment of the site for a residential led mixed use scheme comprising new homes and ancillary ground floor commercial uses be agreed with the granting of over sailing licences if required;

(6)   the Director Finance be granted delegated authority in consultation with the Portfolio Holder to agree the final boundary of the land to be disposed of (noting that the area is not to be greater than the land indicated at Appendix 1 of the report);

(7)   the Director Finance be authorised to take all necessary steps to secure the making, submission, confirmation and implementation of a Compulsory Purchase Order to acquire any third-party proprietary interests within the site (see Appendix 1 of the report);

(8)   the Director Finance be authorised to issue all relevant notices and certificates in connection with the making, confirmation and implementation of any Compulsory Purchase Order;

(9)   the Director Finance be authorised to acquire third party proprietary interests by private treaty negotiation;

(10)                           the Director Finance be authorised to dispose of any third-party propriety interest acquired pursuant to the Compulsory Purchase Order to Exeter City Living in accordance with terms to be agreed;

(11)                           the Director Finance be authorised to make General Vesting Declarations (GVDs) under the Compulsory Purchase (Vesting Declarations) Act 1981 and/or serve notices to treat and notices of entry (if required) following confirmation of a Compulsory Purchase Order by the Secretary of State;

(12)                           the Director Finance be authorised to issue and serve any warrants to obtain possession of property acquired by the Council following the execution of a General Vesting Declarations or service of a notice of entry if it was considered appropriate to do so;

(13)                           the Director Finance be granted delegated authority in consultation with the Leader of the Council, to agree the final procurement contracts; and

(14)                           the City Surveyor be granted delegated authority to work with Exeter City Living to facilitate the regeneration of this strategic city centre site.