Agenda item

Future Letting of the Cedars, North Walsham

Summary:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Options considered:

The Cedars on New Road, North Walsham is currently under-going a major refurbishment as part of the HAZ scheme in partnership with Historic England (HE).

This paper outlines the letting options for both the ground and first floors of the currently vacant premises.

Any future proposals for the adjacent outbuildings known as ‘The Barns’ or ‘The Stables’ will be the subject of a separate paper in due course.    

 

The Cedars has been widely marketed and several lease proposals have been received and assessed. 

 

Conclusions:

 

The marketing has not provided an option for one single occupier to take the whole of the premises which would have been the Councils’ preference.

Given the proposals we have received there are options for the ground and first floors which are detailed in this report. 

However, given that the Council would prefer to see the building let as whole to one occupier the option remains to consider this further and to create a ‘Civic Hub’ based on the interest that has been received to date.

 

Recommendations:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is recommended to Cabinet to make a resolution:

 

1) To note the proposals received, and;

2) Instruct officers to investigate an alternative

delivery model that meets the Councils’ asset

management aspirations and provides the continued community services, and;

3) Continue discussions with parties forming the

 combined option in Proposals 1, 3 and 4, and;

4) Note that this would form the basis of a future

 report.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Decision:

Decision

RESOLVED to:

 

1) To note the proposals received, and;

2) Instruct officers to investigate an alternative delivery model that meets the Councils’ asset management aspirations and provides the continued community services, and;

3) Continue discussions with parties forming the combined option in Proposals 1, 3 and 4, and;

4) Note that this would form the basis of a future  report.

 

Reason for the decision:

 

The recommended proposal supports the Councils Asset Management Plan.

Minutes:

Cllr E Seward, Portfolio Holder for Finance & Assets, introduced this item. He began by thanking both speakers for attending the meeting and for demonstrating a confidence and commitment to North Walsham. He said that he welcomed the interest from the micro-brewery as it brought a different perspective on future use of the building. However, it should be acknowledged that the two speakers had brought different perspectives on how the building should be used in the future and that was the crux of the issue. The property had been marketed for a year and during that time there had been three expressions of interest from community organisations and 1 from a commercial venture. Public sector bids would occupy around 60% of the building and the micro-brewery just under 50%.

 

Cllr Seward explained that the public sector bodies that had put forward bids for space in the building had made it clear that they did not want to share a common entrance with the pub. He said that it was not an option to have the mix of organisations and therefore not viable to pursue that. However, the building did need to be occupied on completion. He went on to say that the Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB) needed a permanent physical presence in the town. Residents could not afford to lose it. In addition, the Town Council had to leave their current premises soon as it was not compliant with energy efficiency regulations. The Town Council needed a permanent base. It provided key services to residents and had also indicated that it was prepared to invest further in the Cedar’s site. Cllr Seward said that the third public sector organisation that had expressed an interest could not be revealed at this stage, but they had indicated that if they could not find a suitable long-term site, then the services that they provided would be lost to the town. Cllr Seward concluded by saying that it was for all of these reasons that Cabinet was recommended to support the Cedars becoming a civic hub for North Walsham.

 

He went onto say that it was important to consider the history of the building, explaining that it had been handed over to NNDC in 1974, following Local Government reorganisation. The property had been the home of the Smith family, who had contributed to the development of the town in the early part of the twentieth century and they had bequeathed it to the Urban District Council.  The time had now come to hand the management of the building back to the town for the local community to use.

 

It was proposed by Cllr E Seward, seconded by Cllr T Adams and

 

RESOLVED to:

 

1) To note the proposals received, and;

2) Instruct officers to investigate an alternative delivery model that meets the Councils’ asset management aspirations and provides the continued community services, and;

3) Continue discussions with parties forming the combined option in Proposals 1, 3 and 4, and;

4) Note that this would form the basis of a future  report.

 

Reason for the decision:

 

The recommended proposal supports the Councils Asset Management Plan.

Supporting documents: