A senior councillor has defended the council’s purchase of the Lloyds Bank building on Bedford’s High Street after it was branded a “reckless” purchase.
Opposition councillors called it a “reckless property purchase” which “doesn’t seem to make sense”.
But the portfolio holder for economic growth, planning and prosperity, councillor Andrea Spice (Conservative, Wixams and Wilstead) told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I don’t think we’re buying properties unnecessarily.
“There are lots of properties that are for sale on the high street, Wilkinson’s the Bath Store, etc. We could just be buying up everything, but we’re not property people in that sense.
“We probably don’t have the experience to own a high street, and actually that wouldn’t be appropriate for us. But what we’re trying to do is buy the key buildings that will help us to work towards our regeneration project.”
Paid too much
The administration has been accused of “paying far above” what the building is worth.
Cllr Spice said: “We paid less than what was asked for. Not to undercut, but just because of what an independent valuer has confirmed is the value that the market has dictated.
“But it’s a key strategic purchase for us, so the difference between the actual property price and what the value is to us is slightly different.”
The deputy mayor, cllr Jim Weir (Conservative, Great Denham) added: “It would be difficult to leave it on the market knowing that our plans are out there.
“Then somebody else buys it and then we’re hemmed in and we can’t do anything. We’d end up paying a hell of a lot more for it.”
In a report on this decision which was published after this interview said the council instructed chartered surveyors, Hartnell Taylor Cooke (HTC) to value the property.
HTC were asked to advise on whether by paying an additional sum of £455,000 could be justified.
HTC confirmed that, although their valuation remains the same, they advise that, “If the building is needed to secure the future of the Mayes Yard Regeneration scheme and is a strategic foothold in delivering Phase One of the scheme, it sounds as if it is an essential purchase.
“Without the backup of [a compulsory purchase] (which, you suggest, the purchase of this site may contribute to achieving) the council are under an obligation to negotiate the best price possible for the purchase.
“If that best achievable price is £1.375 million, then that is the level the market has dictated you need to pay if you wish to purchase the building”.
Mayor Wootton said: “This will be a good investment because it’s property slap bang in the middle of Bedford.”
The executive decision to buy the building has been “called in” by opposition councillors.
Councillor Weir said: “It’s there for them to see, it was already in the strategy and the plans that we talked about at the election.
“So it’s not as though it’s a surprise, we didn’t put individual buildings in there, but we put the overarching vision of redeveloping and re-energising the town centre.”
By John Guinn
Local Democracy Reporter
