Issue - meetings

Canal Corridor Redevelopment

Meeting: 18/01/2011 - Cabinet (Item 91)

91 Canal Corridor Redevelopment pdf icon PDF 86 KB

(Cabinet Member with Special Responsibility Councillor Langhorn)

 

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive

 

 

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

(Cabinet Member with Special Responsibility Councillor Langhorn)

 

(Jon Price, President of Lancaster and Morecambe Chamber of Commerce and Tim Hamilton- Cox who had registered to speak on this item in accordance with the City Council’s agreed procedure and Cabinet Procedure Rule 2.7, spoke to this item.)

 

(Councillor John Whitelegg, who had requested to address Cabinet as a Bulk Ward Councillor, spoke to this item).

 

Cabinet received a report from the Deputy Chief Executive to consider the Development Agreement for the development of the City Council's land for the proposals contained within the Lancaster Canal Corridor Development Brief.

 

The options, options analysis, including risk assessment and officer preferred option, were set out in the report as follows:

 

 

Option 1: Terminate the Development Agreement with Centros (due to there being insufficient time to process an acceptable planning application by October 2011) and seek to carry out a community based masterplanning process

Option 2:

Extend/Revise the Development Agreement with Centros, subject to revised terms and conditions being negotiated by the District Valuer (or their appointed professional) to comply with S123 of the Local Government Act 1972 due to the special purchaser arrangements that are in place

Option 3: Terminate the Development Agreement and retain all existing uses on the Council owned land

Option 4: Terminate the Development Agreement and dispose of the Council owned land on the open market

Advantages

Such a process will engage with all the communities who have an interest in the process, including the residents associated with “Its Our City”.

 

The outcome could also inform the Local Development Framework Land Allocations process for Members to consider.

As detailed in Appendix B, the adjoining land owner has agreed to enter into a land sale agreement with Centros to dispose of their interests in the land.  Considering this, the Council would not need to consider acquiring the land, nor would it need to consider the cost of submitting a planning application as these would all be covered in the Development Agreement with the adjoining land owner, Centros.

 

It would not be considered to be economically value for money to consider acquiring land from a developer where that developer is willing to undertake development themselves.  Such an option of “special purchaser” is considered acceptable on the proviso that the disposing authority ensure it receives market value for the asset and to facilitate this, it is proposed that the District Valuer will be appointed to agree suitable terms and conditions of the proposed Development Agreement.

 

The Council would retain ownership of the site, up until the point when the site is developed, thus maintaining control over the development process.

 

Should members approve working with Centros, this would allow an early start on the planning process, maximising on the positive progress made to date.

 

None

The Council would obtain a capital receipt, but this would be lower than that received if planning approval is sought first.

Disadvantages

Although a community based process would result in a masterplan being  ...  view the full minutes text for item 91