Issue - meetings

The Mersey Gateway Executive Board considered the attached report.

 

RECOMMENDED: That the prudential borrowing required to support a programme of advanced land purchase, as a contingency should the arrangements with Greater Merseyside Pension Fund fail to come to fruition, be agreed and that such agreement establish the affordability limits referred to in recommendation (1) of minute number MGEB10 of the Mersey Gateway Executive Board meeting of 15^th November 2007.

            The Mersey Gateway Executive Board had considered a report of the Strategic Director – Environment, which proposed funding arrangements to enable advance purchase of land required for Mersey Gateway and sought authority to commence negotiations with affected landowners, subject to specific qualifying conditions, that could lead to the acquisition of land and property by agreement in advance of Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) procedure.

 

            RESOLVED: That the prudential borrowing required to support a programme of advance land purchase, as a contingency should the arrangements with Greater Merseyside Pension Fund fail to come to fruition, be agreed and that such agreement establish the affordability limits referred to in recommendation (1) of minute number MGEB10 of the Mersey Gateway Executive Board meeting of 15^th November 2007.

The Board considered a report of the Strategic Director, Environment which proposed funding arrangements to enable advance purchase of land required for Mersey Gateway and sought authority to commence negotiations with affected landowners, subject to specific qualifying conditions, that could lead to the acquisition of land and property by agreement in advance of Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) procedure.

 

RESOLVED: That

 

(1)              the Mersey Gateway Project Director be authorised to commence negotiations with affected landowners which, subject to affordability constraints set by the approved project budget could lead to the Council acquiring land in advance of the CPO process based on following policy:-

 

a)                 cases that would qualify for Statutory Blight;

 

b)                 circumstances where a market sale was not available and failure to sell the business is resulting in severe hardship for the vendor; and

 

c)                  where advanced purchase presents a favourable opportunity for the Council to save money, where the case has been approved by the Chief Finance Officer;

 

(2)              where possible the Council would negotiate an option to purchase land interest instead of agreeing to an outright purchase of property;

 

(3)              the Mersey Gateway Project Director be authorised to enter into negotiations with the administrators for the Greater Manchester Pension Fund with the aim of establishing an acceptable agreement where the fund would acquire property affected by the project prior to transferring the interest to the Council at a later date; and

 

(4)              the prudential borrowing required to support a programme of advanced land purchase, as a contingency should the arrangements with Greater Merseyside Pension Fund fail to come to fruition be referred to the Council for agreement and that such agreement will establish the affordability limits referred to in recommendation (1) above.