Issue - meetings

Report No:   CAB/SE/17/061

Portfolio Holder: Peter Stevens       Lead Officer: Mark Walsh

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL: (19 December 2017)

That:

(1)     Report No: CAB/SE/17/061 and its appendices, be noted;

(2)     the allocation of an additional £1,095,000 to the Council’s Capital Programme funded in line with paragraphs 5.14 - 5.17 of Report No: CAB/SE/17/061, be approved;

(3)     Subject to receiving a planning consent:

          (a)     the Council’s option to procure land at Hollow Road Farm, be    exercised;

(b)     with Suffolk County Council and Forest Heath District Council, a contract be entered into for the construction of the West Suffolk Operational Hub at Hollow Road Farm; and

(4)     it be agreed for the Council’s Section 151 Officer to make the necessary changes to the Council’s 2017/18 prudential indicators as a result of recommendation (2) above.

The Cabinet considered Report No: CAB/SE/17/061, which sought approval for additional funding and associated matters in order to progress the West Suffolk Operational Hub project to the construction phase.

Recent progress with the project was noted, including that, subject to the Secretary of State (upon consultation) confirming that he did not intend to call-in the detailed planning application for his own determination, the Development Control Committee granted planning consent for the West Suffolk Operational Hub to be built at Hollow Road Farm, Fornham St Martin.  38 separate planning conditions had been applied to this consent.  

Councillor Peter Stevens, Portfolio Holder for Operations, drew relevant issues to the attention of Cabinet, including that there remained a clear need to urgently invest in new waste and street scene services facilities in West Suffolk and that current arrangements were unsustainable and costly to the taxpayer.

The reasons for the request for additional capital funding required were reiterated to the Cabinet, as provided in the report, including that although costs had increased, these were shared with Forest Heath District Council and Suffolk County Council, and taking the cost of borrowing into account, the known benefits of the scheme would still break even with the status quo financial position whilst providing modern facilities and capacity for significant future growth.  The scheme would also enable the relocation of the current St Edmundsbury depot allowing the delivery of further development at Western Way.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL:

That:

(1)    Report No: CAB/SE/17/061 and its appendices, be noted;

(2)    the allocation of an additional £1,095,000 to the Council’s Capital Programme funded in line with paragraphs 5.14 - 5.17 of Report No: CAB/SE/17/061, be approved;

(3)    Subject to receiving a planning consent:

          (a)    the Council’s option to procure land at Hollow Road         Farm, be exercised;

(b)    with Suffolk County Council and Forest Heath District Council, a contract be entered into for the construction of the West Suffolk Operational Hub at Hollow Road Farm; and

(4)    it be agreed for the Council’s Section 151 Officer to make the necessary changes to the Council’s 2017/18 prudential indicators as a result of recommendation (2) above.