Agenda item

(a)  Agreed to the disposal strategy for the North West Quadrant (NWQ)  site and to delegate authority to the Executive Director Place and Community in consultation with the Lead Member for Financial Oversight and Council Assets and the section 151 officer to pursue that disposal strategy in accordance with the draft Heads of Terms , and to report back to Cabinet for approval to dispose of NWQ on the final agreed disposal terms subject to the demonstration of best value consideration for the disposal.

(b)  Agreed the updated Site Development Plans (SDPs) for Montem Lane and Stoke Wharf which recommend a disposal strategy for each site and to delegate authority to the Executive Director Place and Community in consultation with the Lead Member for Financial Oversight and Council Assets and the section 151 officer to pursue that disposal strategy (including the negotiation and agreement of all  legal documents that give effect to the Sale) and to report back to Cabinet for approval of the Adopted SDP’s and the final agreed disposal terms, subject to the  demonstration of best value consideration for the disposal.

(c)  Agreed to extend the current Option Agreement for Stoke Wharf up to 31st December 2022 to allow time for the disposal strategy referred to at b) to be pursued including (i) the marketing of the Stoke Wharf site and (ii) the agreement of legal documents needed to permit the disposal of the Stoke Wharf site prior to development.

(d)  Delegated authority to the Executive Director Place and Community in consultation with the Lead Member for Financial Oversight and Council Assets and the section 151 officer to approve a further extension to the Stoke Wharf Option Agreement, depending on the outcome of the marketing exercise to be undertaken in Autumn 2022, to allow for the Sale to complete in early 2023.

(e)  Noted that those parts of the Montem site which belong to the Council are no longer required for the purposes for which they are presently held, and recommend to full Council that officers be authorised to take all necessary steps to appropriate the site (shown edged red on the plan in Appendix 5) for planning purposes to facilitate the carrying out of development, re-development or improvement on or in relation to that land.

(f)  Noted the proposed timetable for the site disposals in para 3.1.6 of the report and further Cabinet decisions required to complete the disposals.

The Lead Member for Financial Oversight & Council Assets introduced the report which provided an update on the key sites that were owned by the Council (or part-owned in the case of Stoke Wharf) and were optioned to Slough Urban Renewal (SUR).

The report included a number of recommendations which would enable the disposal of key sites to generate capital receipts for the Council, reduce the Council’s financial commitments and secure best value in accordance with the Council’s Asset Disposals Strategy and statutory obligations.  The report contained appendices which contained exempt information, and the Cabinet entered Part II to discuss and note these appendices prior to making its decisions.

The Cabinet noted the background to the creation of SUR and discussed the options for the disposal of each of the sites covered in the report – North West Quadrant, Stoke Wharf and Montem.  There were complexities with each of the sites and the aim had be to find a solution which generated a capital receipt and de-risked the Council.

It was agreed that the Cabinet would exclude the press and public during the course of the discussion to consider the information in the exempt appendices.  After due consideration the Cabinet agreed the recommendations in the Part I report which included the disposal strategy for each of the sites.

Resolved –

(a)  That the disposal strategy for the North West Quadrant (NWQ) site be agreed and that delegated authority be given to the Executive Director Place and Community in consultation with the Lead Member for Financial Oversight and Council Assets and the section 151 officer to pursue that disposal strategy in accordance with the draft Heads of Terms, and to report back to Cabinet for approval to dispose of NWQ on the final agreed disposal terms subject to the demonstration of best value consideration for the disposal.

(b)  That the updated Site Development Plans (SDPs) for Montem Lane and Stoke Wharf which recommend a disposal strategy for each site be agreed and that delegated authority be given to the Executive Director Place and Community in consultation with the Lead Member for Financial Oversight and Council Assets and the section 151 officer to pursue that disposal strategy (including the negotiation and agreement of all  legal documents that give effect to the Sale) and to report back to Cabinet for approval of the Adopted SDP’s and the final agreed disposal terms, subject to the  demonstration of best value consideration for the disposal.

(c)  That it be agreed to extend the current Option Agreement for Stoke Wharf up to 31st December 2022 to allow time for the disposal strategy referred to at b) to be pursued including (i) the marketing of the Stoke Wharf site and (ii) the agreement of legal documents needed to permit the disposal of the Stoke Wharf site prior to development.

(d)  That delegated authority be given to the Executive Director Place and Community in consultation with the Lead Member for Financial Oversight and Council Assets and the section 151 officer to approve a further extension to the Stoke Wharf Option Agreement, depending on the outcome of the marketing exercise to be undertaken in Autumn 2022, to allow for the Sale to complete in early 2023.

(e)  That it be noted that those parts of the Montem site which belong to the Council were no longer required for the purposes for which they were presently held, and recommend to full Council that officers be authorised to take all necessary steps to appropriate the site (shown edged red on the plan in Appendix 5 to the report) for planning purposes to facilitate the carrying out of development, re-development or improvement on or in relation to that land.

(f)  That the proposed timetable for the site disposals in para 3.1.6 of the report and further Cabinet decisions required to complete the disposals be noted.