Issue - meetings

Further to Minute 48 (17 October 2023), the Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Development introduced a report on proposals to progress the disposal of a further 63 new homes built at the Oxlow Lane redevelopment project.

The Cabinet Member advised that, as with the previous reports, the properties within Castle House and Petticoat House would be transferred, by way of long leases and associated loans, to the Barking and Dagenham Reside Regeneration Ltd (Reside) structure of companies following practical completion, due in March 2024.  Block J consisted of 66 London Affordable Rent (LAR) and 58 Affordable Rent (AR) properties which the Cabinet Member confirmed would be available to those on the Council’s housing waiting / transfer lists.

The Cabinet Member also referred to state aid and subsidy control issues relating to loans provided to Reside that were outlined in the report and the requirement for the Council to declare previous schemes on the Subsidy Database or to make a referral to the Subsidy Advice Unit. 

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note that the Strategic Director, Resources, shall declare on the Subsidy Database the schemes included in Appendix 1 to the report and shall make the referrals to the Subsidy Advice Unit for the schemes included in Appendix 2 to the report;

(ii)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director, Resources, in consultation with the Strategic Director, Inclusive Growth, to subsequently take any remedial action necessary resulting from such declarations or referrals provided that such action does not materially affect the approvals granted by Cabinet;

(iii)  Approve, in principle, the disposal of the following Oxlow Lane redevelopment scheme by the granting of long leases to the appropriate Reside entity as identified in the report:

- Castle House, Rainham Road North, Dagenham, RM10 7YW

- Petticoat House, Rainham Road North, Dagenham, RM10 7YY

(iv)  Approve, in principle, the indicative draft Heads of Terms for leases and loans for the Oxlow Lane redevelopment scheme as set out in section 2 of the report;

(v)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director, Resources, in consultation with the Strategic Director, Inclusive Growth, to agree and finalise the terms of the loan, lease and any other associated documents, and to take any steps necessary to ensure compliance with s123 of the Local Government Act 1972 and the Subsidy Control Act 2022; and

(vi)  Delegate authority to the Head of Legal, in consultation with the Strategic Director, Inclusive Growth, to execute all the legal agreements, contracts, and other documents on behalf of the Council in order to implement the arrangements.