Agenda item

A report from the Director of Finance, Resources and Customer Services will be circulated as soon as possible. (Report No.14, agenda part two also refers).

(Report No.13)

(8.45 – 8.50pm)

TO FOLLOW

Councillor Doug Taylor (Leader of the Council) read out the following statement prior to the consideration of the following report, the part two and super part two reports:

“Should the Cabinet agree in the super part 2 to take the decision to acquire the Gibbs Road property, subject to the Council undertaking its property, financial and legal due diligence, I am likely to use the Urgent Action procedures set out in our Constitution, Chapter 4.1 Rules of Procedure, section 30.

The financial implication of the purchase is to add to the 2016/17 Capital Programme; this engages Schedule 4 of the Functions and Responsibilities Regulations 2000 and is not for Cabinet to agree but Full Council.

The urgency action procedure enables me as the Leader to exercise the powers of the Council in any matter of immediate urgency and cannot await the next ordinary meeting of the Council.

I am likely to take the decision in consultation with the relevant Cabinet Members and will report the decision to the next Council meeting due to take place on the 13 July 2016.”

Councillor Alan Sitkin (Cabinet Member for Economic Regeneration and Business Development) introduced the report of the Director of Finance, Resources and Customer Services (No.13) seeking approval to purchase a vacant industrial site on Gibbs Road, Montagu Industrial Estate, N18 3PU which had come to the market.

NOTED

1.               That Report No.14 and 14A (super part 2) also referred as detailed in Minute No.14 below.

2.               The need for the Council to take advantage of such opportunities as they arose for the future benefit of the Council.

Alternative Options Considered: Not acquiring the property was considered a lost opportunity, given the Council’s current land holdings in the area.

(NOTE: The following decisions were taken at the conclusion of Members’ discussion of both the part one, part two and super part two reports as outlined in this Minute and in Minute No.14 below).

DECISION: The Cabinet agreed to approve the acquisition of the property which would be achieved through the purchase of a company specifically set up to hold the property on Gibbs Road, N18 3PU, or through direct purchase of the property by negotiation and delegate authority to the Director of Finance, Resources and Customer Services in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance and Efficiency to agree final Heads of Terms and exchange/complete the transaction if the Council’s offer was accepted by the vendor, subject to appropriate legal, finance and property due diligence being undertaken to the satisfaction of the Director of Finance, Resources and Customer Services in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance and Efficiency.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL an addition to the Capital Programme to be funded from borrowing to enable the purchase of the site as detailed in the part 2 report, Minute No.14 below refers.

Reason: This was a rare opportunity in the Enfield property market. The site’s planning context and its constraints severely restrict the potential for other uses, in particular residential development. In the Council’s view there were several reasons that justify the Council acquiring the property, and these were outlined in the part 2 report, Minute No. 14 below refers. Due to the need for an urgent decision to enable the Council to take advantage of this time limited opportunity it had been necessary to use the Council’s urgency procedure in order to gain the necessary approvals to proceed.

(Key decision – reference number 4343/U197)

Members continued their discussion of the reports as reflected in Minute No.14 below.