Council response

Response sent to lead petitioner
Thank you for your Petition presented to our Cabinet meeting on 12th September 2018.

As you may be aware, the Council have an ongoing commitment to review its property portfolio and identify underutilised or underperforming assets with a view to a sale if it considers that it is in the Council’s overall best interests to do so.

In this particular case, the small parcel of land under discussion was presented to the Council by the owner of the former car park as an opportunity to enhance a neighbouring residential development and deliver a capital receipt which is considerably in excess of its current market value as amenity land.

A sale would also remove the Council’s liability for landscape maintenance and highway repair.

For your information, a valuation of the land is pending, underwritten by the developer, at no cost to the Council and on the understanding that formal Council approval will still be required and no guarantees can be offered as to success in this respect which will depend, to a great extent, on the value released from a sale as assessed against the rather limited amenity value of the plot.

Once the Valuation is completed it will be presented to Council Members who will consider the capital receipt alongside the wishes of the local community and make a decision accordingly.

If there is Member support for the disposal of the site the Council would go to the market specifically inviting offers from the developer, the adjacent land owner and your group / nominated representative subject to your group entering into a formal and binding commitments to the future maintenance and repair of this land.

I hope the above clarifies the situation.