Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Ken Ball, Henry Caunce and Anthony Gee.

Members are reminded of their responsibility to declare any pecuniary interest in respect of matters contained in this agenda.

If you have a pecuniary interest you must withdraw from the meeting. Normally you should leave the room before the business starts to be discussed. You do, however, have the same right to speak as a member of the public and may remain in the room to enable you to exercise that right and then leave immediately. In either case you must not seek to improperly influence a decision on the matter.

There were no declarations of interest.

To consider the exclusion of the press and public for the following items of business on the ground that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act.

RESOLVED – that the press and public be excluded for the following item of business on the grounds that it involves the disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act.

The Mayor proposed that Council Procedure Rules be suspended in order for the meeting to be held in committee format to enable greater freedom of debate.

RESOLVED – that the meeting be held “in Committee” format.

Members are asked to consider a report of the Market Walk Steering Committee with their recommendations and detailed background information regarding the potential purchase of Market Walk Shopping Centre.

The Market Walk Steering Committee met on Monday 4 November to make final recommendations.

Members received a report of the Market Walk Steering Committee which provided an overview of the work it had undertaken in investigating the potential purchase of the Market Walk Shopping Centre, a proposal agreed at the last Council Meeting on 17 September 2013.

Appended to the report were the following documents which provided the background information to the potential purchase, and in particular, the outcomes of the due diligence process:

·         Minutes of the three meetings of the Market Walk Steering Committee held on 28 September; 14 October and 4 November 2013

·         Valuation Report from Deloitte

·         Building Survey Report from Deloitte

·         Environmental Survey information from URS (and historic information from WSP and Frank Knight)

·         Legal Reports from Hill Dickinson Solicitors

·         Retail Report from Tushingham Moore

·         Lancashire County Council Advice on the Potential Purchase of Market Walk, including Financing Options

·         Illustrative Cashflow Analysis from Deloitte

·         A proposal for the Future Management of the Market Walk Shopping Centre from Deloitte 

·         Town Centre Masterplan Baseline Report from Deloitte.

Councillor Alistair Bradley, Executive Leader presented the proposals of the Market Walk Steering Committee and their recommendations that the Council purchase the Market Walk Shopping Centre, the preferred financing option and a suggested approach to the future management of the centre. The main reasons for recommending the purchase were to create an income stream to help meet the increasing gap created by reduced central government funding; and to help ensure a sustainable future for the town centre through the town centre strategy, ensuring tenants in Market Walk were engaged and involved. There were undoubted risks involved in such a major transaction and financial undertaking but risks could be mitigated and the Market Walk Steering Committee had considered detailed information relating to the outcomes of the due diligence process and retail trend analyses.

Councillor Greg Morgan expressed concerns that the Council would be borrowing over £20million over a period of 50 years without any expertise as elected members in this area of business, He and Councillor Joyce as members of the Steering Committee had voted against the purchase because they felt it was impossible to know what town centre retailing would look like so far ahead and the risks involved were too great. Councillor Joyce referred to three reasons for not supporting the recommendations – in his opinion, the price of the Shopping Centre was too high, particularly in light of the outstanding repairs; he did not feel the Council had the expertise to run an asset of this type; and the financial risks were too great with a possibility that central government would change local authority borrowing rules over time which could impact on the Council, even to the possibility of insolvency.

A number of Members referred to press coverage about reduced levels of occupancy in retail premises in town centres; the reduction in retail rental levels; the unknown impact of the new Asda development in the town centre and any future out of town retail development at, for example, Botany Bay.

In response, the Leader  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.C.89