Futures Forum: District Council: Knowle relocation: "EDDC closes in on new office site":
press release
SOS has issued its own take on the options being proffered:
Five years on, and Knowle relocation options remain undecided,
leaving the financial risk unclear.
The Express and Echo has just published this report:
East Devon
District Council announces relocation site shortlist
By Exeter Express and Echo | Posted:
November 08, 2013
East Devon District Council has announced
details of four sites its headquarters could relocate to.
Following the decision
by the Cabinet in July to press ahead with a move from its antiquated premises
at Knowle in Sidmouth, instead of staying-put, 15 locations were identified as
potential sites. From these, two were not
eligible and an executive group of councillors and officers whittled the rest
down to four.
On October 30, the full
council were briefed and the shortlisted sites were presented publicly at a
stakeholders meeting today.
The sites are:
- A purpose built building
on the High Street in Cranbrook.
- Clyst House at Winslade
Park, Clyst St Mary.
- A building at Skypark
near junction 29 of the M5.
- Two sites at Heathpark
business park at Honiton, either a purpose built building at the site of the
council owned business centre, or at another location at the site.
Each site had to fulfil
certain criteria including financial viability, be environmentally friendly and
be aligned with the Local Plan.
The stakeholders at
today’s meeting included chambers of commerce and other business groups
including the Federation of Small Businesses, parish and town councils and
pressure groups including the East Devon Alliance and Save Our Sidmouth.
The ambition is that the
move will be cost neutral, potentially financed through the sale of land at
Knowle to a developer, sale of the council’s Manstone depot site in Sidmouth
and sale of its Heathpark business centre if it was not chosen as the
relocation site.
On the back of various
surveys and assessments, deputy chief executive Richard Cohen said the council
would save tens of thousands of pounds a year if its offices moved from the
aging premises at Knowle into a newer building.
However campaign groups
have branded the process as “flawed” and do not believe the move will be as
cost effective as the council proclaim. In addition, they have unwavering
concerns about what they fear will be an adverse economic impact on Sidmouth.
One site in Exmouth,
which cannot yet be revealed, was considered but none came forward in the east
of the district or along the coast.
Mr Cohen, who has been
leading the relocation project, described the search as “comprehensive” and
said the sites that came forward were an “interesting mix”. He said in the coming
weeks more investigation and negotiation will be taking place in order to
settle upon one of the sites.
Cross party site visits
are scheduled for November 18, and a report will go to Cabinet on November 27,
with recommendations on the next steps. It is hoped that a decision on the
preferred site will be made within a few weeks.
“The site at Cranbrook
is financially viable, it’s at the upper end of cost but it’s prominent and
it’s a vote of confidence in this new community,” he said. “And there could be
the option of combining with other services like a library or the town
council.”
Mr Cohen described the
site at Clyst House as the most “unexpected”. Over three floors, the building
would be too big for the council’s needs however presents the opportunity for
renting some of the space as a way of generating revenue for the council. It’s about a third
larger than we need,” he continued. “But it’s being offered to us at a very
good price and we could move in a year earlier than the other locations. But the exercise is focused
on being more cost efficient going into the future.” If the council chooses
Clyst House, it anticipates moving by July 2015. If any of the others are
selected it could be July 2016.
Mr Cohen confirmed that
details about the second site at the Heathpark estate could not yet be revealed
due to commercially sensitive reasons. As part of the process
to identify potential relocation sites, in September the council “tested out
the market” to see if any developers were interested in its Heathpark site and
eight bids were made.
These are due to be
reported back to Cabinet this month with recommendations on whether there is a
viable offer and therefore whether the site should be sold.
If the current business
centre is ultimately sold, “most likely to a supermarket chain which is likely
to offer the best price”, the council aims to find another location for it and
existing businesses would not be made “homeless” in the interim.
The accessibility of the
new HQ including its transport links, are major considerations in the process. But it is recognised
that the majority of residents communicate with the council via the phone or
internet.
Councillor Ray Bloxham
who is part of the executive group, said he is already working on how council
services have a presence elsewhere in the community.
Mr Cohen acknowledged
recent allegations of “secrecy” by campaigners against the move. He added: “We’re trying
to get as much information about the process out there as we can. But what the public is
interested in and what is in the public interest are often different. We don’t want to
jeopardise the best return for the public purse – that’s always the benchmark
on whether we can get information out there or not.” He added: “It’s been a
rigorous process which we’ve had to let run its course. We’ve move on quite
significantly since July and members need to consider the next stages which
will get us to the point of choosing a site.”
Details of the locations
are being distributed throughout East Devon by the council.
East Devon District Council announces relocation site shortlist | Exeter Express and Echo
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