Agenda item - GENOTIN ROAD CAR PARK, ENFIELD TOWN

Agenda item

GENOTIN ROAD CAR PARK, ENFIELD TOWN

To receive a report from Sarah Cary, Executive Director of Place.   

Minutes:

RECEIVED a report from Sarah Cary, Executive Director Place.

 

The Chair, Councillor Levy advised that the report is still currently a draft document; however it is the role of OSC as a critical friend to inform, comment and possibly modify the report if necessary. However, it is not the role of OSC today to discuss the implications of what may happen further down the road as these are material considerations for planning. Cabinet will make a decision on the recommendations which may possibly include other recommendations that arise at this evening’s meeting.

 

NOTED:

 

i)                 The report follows a Cabinet report on the strategy for Genotin Road Car Park which went to Cabinet in November 2017.

ii)               Cabinet supported the retention of Metaswitch in the Borough and noted the development of a new office for them would support Enfield Town renewal and deliver positive outcomes for the whole borough.

iii)              Cabinet delegated authority to Officers to progress final terms pf the Option Agreement for the identified site of the Genotin Road car park. The delegation required a further report to Cabinet prior to any Option Agreement being entered into.

iv)             The aim of this report is for Cabinet to enable the Council to fund development of, and to grant an institutional lease for, grade A office building to Metaswitch Networks Ltd at an acceptable rate of return, whilst retaining this major employer and business in Enfield Town.

v)               It is recommended that Cabinet delegate authority to the executive Director Place and Executive Director Resources to agree final heads of Terms and enter into a contract on those terms for either Option 1 or 2, the full details of which are laid out in the Part 1 report attached to the agenda.

vi)             Fay Hammond, Director of Finance explained the alternative options that have been considered, and again, these are detailed in the part 1 report.

vii)            Sarah and Fay provided members with further information of the proposed plans and in-depth discussions took place.

 

Following discussions the following questions/comments were raised:

 

Q.      It is understood from the report that the preferred option for the Council is Option 1. Is this correct and are Metaswitch definitely on board for this option?

A.       Yes, Metaswitch have formally accepted the terms and our lawyers should have a draft copy of the Heads of Terms in their inbox today.

 

Q.      Why do you think it is the best option for the Council to fund this for Metaswitch?

A.       The due diligence that we have undertaken has proven this to be the best option as we will still have an asset at the end of it. Councillor Smith commented that the Council could still get what it wants without borrowing millions of pounds. Sarah advised that there would be a lot more detail regarding this information in the Part 2 report.

 

Q.      Are the Council going to manage this project?

A.       We will approve the project at certain points but we won’t be managing it.

 

Q.      Why would you dispose of an asset, i.e. the car park which generates approximately £200,000 in income per year? We are meant to be encouraging more foot-fall into Enfield Town so why would you dispose of a car park?

A.       We will ensure that car park income is part of the due diligence process. We will also need to look at options for increasing car parking in Enfield.

         

The Chair said that it is important to ensure that answers to all the questions raised today are fully incorporated into the report to Cabinet. He said that if we are suggesting at the moment that the Council are moving to a decision to retain a company in Enfield town, we need to be mindful of the implications of this and these issues need to be thoroughly looked at and addressed.

 

Further questions were raised which included:

 

·       What are the long term plan/implications? What is the forward plan if in 15/20 years Metaswitch leave Enfield?

·       Who will get the income if Metaswitch decide to rent out the car park in the evenings and at weekends?

·       Has a cost analysis been done on what Metaswitch employees currently spend in Enfield Town? Can we see details of the Cost Benefit Analysis that have been undertaken?

·       What are the options for Metaswitch funding this deal themselves?

·       Will Metaswitch be covering the loss to the Council for future car park charges?

·       Why is there no Equalities Impact Assessment included in the report? It was felt that the proposed build would have a huge impact on the community and local residents as well as local faith communities who regularly use the car park at times of worship.

·       Are we as a Council being driven by what Metaswitch want or are we doing this as it really is what’s best for the Council?

·       Further concrete evidence should be included in the report to Cabinet on what other car parking will be made available for use in Enfield (e.g. schools etc). Convincing and specific information is required.

·       We are making assumptions about how much Metaswitch contribute to the viability of the Town Centre. Again specific and concrete evidence is required.

·       Cost Benefit Analysis figures should be included in the Part 2 report to Cabinet.

The Chair finalised this item by advising Officers that the Cabinet Report needs to fully answer and acknowledge all the questions and points raised this evening.

 

He reminded Members and Officers that reports are open to the Call-In process so all future reports need to be robust and transparent. This discussion has been a perfect example of pre-decision scrutiny and he hoped Officers had found it useful.

Supporting documents: