The Cabinet Member AGREED the following recommendations:

Authority to fund & progress RIBA Stages 2-3

1.    Authority is given to the Director of Property & Assets in consultation with the Executive Director for Resources, Section 151 Officer and Cabinet Member for Resources to fund and progress with works to complete RIBA stages 2 – 3 (including surveys, professional fees and further design development) in accordance with the Old County Offices (OCO) Redevelopment Business Case – detailed in the exempt report in Part 2 of this report. The output from RIBA Stage 3 will inform the Final Business Case which will require further approval in due course.

Authority to agree contracts and manage RIBA Stages 2-3

2.    Authority is given to the Director of Property & Assets in consultation with the Executive Director for Resources, Section 151 Officer and Cabinet Member for Resources to tender, agree terms, complete contracts then manage relevant contracts to complete works up to end of RIBA Stage 3 redevelopment (surveys, professional fees and further design development) within the financial parameter listed in the exempt report in Part 2 and as per resourcing parameters as laid out in Part 1 Section C Resources Implications.   

Cabinet to note request for finance for RIBA stage 2-3

3   This report seeks funding only to progress the project to the end of RIBA Stage 2-3 whereby the project can then be reassessed with costs, design and risks better defined, with a maximum sum provisionally agreed with a Contractor before being formalised in a Design and Build JCT Construction Contract for the Contractor to take the project to full completion. This will be summarised in the Full Business Case and it is only at this stage that BCC will need to commit to the full value of the development. 

Currently £727k has been released in the Capital Programme to progress the OCO development.  It is now estimated that it will cost a total of £878k to deliver the end of RIBA Stage 3.  Therefore this is an additional request for £151k to top up this fund.

The Final Business Case to progress the development will be submitted to the  Property Board, in Summer 2020.

Authority to set up Property Management Company

4     Authority is given to the Director of Property & Assets in consultation with the Executive Director for Resources, Section 151 Officer and Cabinet Member for Resources to progress with setting up a commercial trading company wholly owned by the Council to manage the Councils interests in acquisitions, developments and delivering income from these developments

A Final Business Case highlighting the process and benefits will be submitted to Property Board in Summer  2020.

Authority to market units for sale or rental on completion of redevelopment   

5      Authority is given to the Director of Property & Assets in consultation with the Executive Director for Resources, Section 151 Officer and Cabinet Member for Resources to tender, agree terms, complete contracts, then manage the relevant contracts to complete the sale or rental of the 51 residential units, taking all appropriate actions on appropriate contract terms,  in accordance with the financial parameters and tenure mix determined within the Final Business Case.