Agenda item

Ivybridge Regeneration Project - Update

Minutes:

E.62/20

The Lead Member for Enterprise presented the Executive with a report that updated on the Ivybridge Regeneration Project.  It was highlighted that £65,000 for commissioning work had been previously agreed at the 17th September 2020 Executive Meeting.  This money had been utilised by the project team to ascertain advice on planning, ecology, buildability, car parking regime, lease arrangements, and Treasury Management advice.  An economic assessment of Ivybridge Centre was also commissioned.

 

The outcome of this work had shown the project to be technically and economically viable, with the regeneration project offering significant benefits to local economy and public realm.  The Lead Member noted the scheme had strong support from residents, the business community, the local Town Council, Ward Members, and local stakeholders. The Member expressed his thanks to officers for the work involved in both project development and the resultant report.

 

One Non-Executive Member registered his views that the scheme had been a missed opportunity in imaginative regeneration but several Members of the Executive stated that building a supermarket was a recognised means to help regeneration.  There was disagreement over how much this particular supermarket brand utilised local providers. 

 

There was also a discussion regarding the options of retaining ownership of the land and building as opposed to selling the land to the supermarket chain, or getting the supermarket to build the store and just charging ground rent.  The Director for Place outlined the reasons for maintaining control over the project, namely it allowed funding of significant improvements i.e. to the car parking, new cycle routes, the skate park, and allowed for a long lease to secure tenants.

 

A Member of the Executive commented that questions raised by Members in informal briefing sessions were not in the public domain and therefore the ability to raise questions again in this forum was important for transparency.  He also outlined that although he would be supporting this item, it was reluctantly, as he felt this scheme was not a true regeneration project and offered to take Members on a tour of other regeneration schemes, once covid restrictions were lifted.

 

Another Member of the Executive highlighted the amount of money which had been allocated to Ivybridge in recent years to help with regeneration and outlined several projects, including the upgrade to the leisure facility.

 

It was then:

 

rECOMMENDED

 

That the Executive RECOMMEND to Council to:

 

1)    approve the Ivybridge Regeneration project through to planning, tender, construction and lease (subject but not limited to the regulatory statutory planning process and the total scheme cost being within the £9 million financial envelope),

 

2)    approve the financial case as set out within this report and the borrowing of £9 million from the Public Works Loans Board (PWLB) to finance the regeneration project,

 

3)    approve the spend of up to £450,000, funded from the Business Rates Retention Earmarked Reserve, recognizing these will be abortive costs if the project does not proceed at any given stage pre-construction,

 

4)    approve the procurement strategy and any associated contract awards,

 

5)    approve variation of parking tariffs in principle, subject to final tariff design by the Head of Assets in consultation with the Commercial Portfolio Holder and Leader of the Council

 

6)    delegate authority to the Head of Assets in consultation with Director of Place & Enterprise and Monitoring Officer to enter the Agreement for Lease (and subsequent lease of 25 years + 15 years) with the proposed Foodstore tenant.

 

Supporting documents: