Issue - meetings

Further to Minute 144 (24 April 2012), the Cabinet Member for Regeneration presented a report on the comprehensive master plan that had been developed for the regeneration of the Becontree Heath area.

The Cabinet Member referred to the proposals for the nine specific sites that had been identified for redevelopment / improvement in the area and the steps required to deliver each project.  These included the sale of the Becontree Leisure Centre car park and a vacant strip of Council-owned land to Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc (known as “Morrisons”) to facilitate the expansion of the supermarket and options for the former Ship and Anchor Public House site, the details of which were set out in a private and confidential appendix to the report.

Cabinet resolved:

(i)  To agree the Becontree Heath master plan proposals as set out in the report, which include the potential sites identified for redevelopment, the Merry Fiddlers Public Realm improvements, the procurement of a Developer Partner for Althorne Way and other potential sites and the commencement of enveloping works to Stour Road and Gosfield Road housing blocks;

(ii)  To authorise the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Head of Legal and Democratic Services, the Chief Finance Officer and the Cabinet Member for Finance, to agree the terms of the sale to Morrisons of the Becontree Leisure Centre car park and a vacant strip of land, shown edged purple and green respectively on the map at Appendix B to the report, and to enter into all necessary agreements;

(iii)  To authorise officers to begin negotiations with the owners of the former Ship and Anchor Public House site, with the option of acquiring the privately owned land and marketing the site for a commercial use;

(iv)  To agree that Becontree Heath be included as a potential pilot project under the proposed borough-wide Energy Companies Obligation (ECO) retrofitting scheme partnership with British Gas, which is to be the subject of a detailed report to the next meeting of Cabinet on 19 November 2013;

(v)  To note that a further report will be presented to Cabinet in due course to seek the necessary approvals, including the allocation of funding for the redevelopment works, to enable the delivery of the Becontree Heath master plan proposals; and

(vi)  To agree that consultation be carried out with local residents and businesses on the proposals.