Agenda item

Appendices 2 - 4 to this report are exempt from publication by virtue of paragraph 3 of Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended) as they relate to the financial and/or business affairs of the Council and/or other parties, and the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Further to Minutes 90 (27 January 2015) and 121 (19 April 2016), the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment presented a report on the current position regarding 64 - 68 Church Street and the former Ship and Anchor Public House site, as well as proposals relating to an industrial site within the Barking Riverside Gateway Housing Zone.

With regard to 64 - 68 Church Street, Dagenham, the Cabinet Member advised that following unsuccessful negotiations with the adjoining landowner to dispose of the Council’s interests in the site it was now proposed to offer to purchase the adjoining site and for the Council to lead on the redevelopment.

In respect of the former Ship and Anchor Public House site at Becontree Heath in which the Council and a private landowner held interests, five offers to purchase the site for housing development had been received.  It was noted that the final terms of a sale would be subject to negotiation and, in a number of cases, were conditional on planning approval.

The intention in relation to Barking Riverside Gateway Housing Zone was for the Council to acquire the long leasehold interest of an industrial unit in the area, which was strategically important to the Council’s longer-term vision for the area.  The Cabinet Member advised on the outcome of initial discussions with the site owner and referred to the likely cost of acquiring the site, the future value of the Council’s combined freehold and leasehold interest in the site and the potential rental income from acquiring the leasehold which would cover the costs of financing the acquisition.

The Cabinet Member for Corporate Performance and Delivery raised issues regarding the likely tenure mix of a residential development at the former Ship and Anchor Public House site and the Council’s strategic approach to the marketing of major regeneration opportunities in the Borough.  The Cabinet Member for Economic and Social Development gave a view on the type of housing that he would expect to be developed on the former Ship and Anchor site and reference was made to the strategy that set out the Council’s ambitions for development and tenure mix across the Borough.  The Cabinet Member for Economic and Social Development and the Leader also responded to the point regarding the marketing of the Borough’s major regeneration opportunities.

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Approve the alternative disposal route in respect of the Council’s freehold interest in 64 - 68 Church Street, Dagenham by making an offer to acquire the adjoining site, subject to a formal valuation and on terms outlined in the report;

(ii)  Approve the disposal of the Council’s interest in the former Ship and Anchor Public House site to the preferred bidder, Lindhill, on terms outlined in the report;

(iii)  Approve the acquisition of an industrial site within the Barking Riverside Gateway Housing Zone, as shown edged red in the plan at Appendix 3 and on the terms set out in Appendix 4 to the report, in order to contribute to the wider regeneration of the Riverside area;

(iv)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director of Finance and Investment, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment and the Director of Law and Governance, to negotiate terms and agree the contract documents to fully implement and effect the transactions relating to the above sites; and

(v)  Authorise the Director of Law and Governance, or an authorised delegate on her behalf, to execute all of the legal agreements, contracts and other documents on behalf of the Council.

(Part of this item was considered after a resolution had been passed to exclude the public and press from the meeting due to the commercially confidential nature of the information, in accordance with paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).)