Agenda item

The Appendix to this report contains exempt information as defined in Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 and is not for publication. The public and press may therefore be excluded for part of this item during consideration of the Appendix.

Purpose of Report

To seek Executive approval to refuse an application by the Brayford Trust for Landlord’s consent to sublet a part of the Brayford Pool for the erection of a restaurant, known as The Platform.

Decision

(1)       That the application by the Brayford Trust under the lease to develop and sub-let that part of the Brayford for the Platform development be refused.

(2)       That the granting of a loan to the Trust be approved, with the terms delegated to the Council’s Chief Finance Officer to be linked with an agreed dredging programme.

Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

None.

Reason for Decision

The Brayford Trust had made an application to the Council as landlord of the Brayford Pool to give consent to sublet part of the Brayford Pool for the erection of a two storey building as a restaurant. This was further to planning permission being granted via the Secretary of State who had overturned the Planning Committee’s original decision to refuse the application.

Initial views of the Strategic Property Services Manager on the Trust’s application to the Council as landlord was that the Council would wish to keep the open appearance of Brayford Pool in line with the recently adopted public realm strategy and in accordance with the lease terms to the Brayford Trust.

The Council also wanted to ensure that any permitted sub-lettings continued to be on a rental basis, rather than a premium or peppercorn arrangement, so as to guarantee that an income stream was available should management of the Pool return to the Council in the future. Any proposal by the Brayford Trust to convert the rental income into a premium payment would result in a reduction of the value of the Council’s interest and was therefore unacceptable to the authority.

The Brayford Trust was both a company and charity and received no external funding, therefore needing to raise funds itself in order to carry out the obligations under the lease. The lease set out a number of obligations for the Trust which included:

·         to manage the Pool in accordance with the Trust’s charitable objectives;

·         to keep the Pool open and available for recreational use by the public;

·         to provide moorings;

·         to keep the Pool in good condition;

·         to keep the Pool free for rubbish and litter and free from weeds;

·         to maintain, and where necessary, to shore up and pile the natural banks;

·         to use reasonable endeavours to ensure a sufficient depth of water for navigation by dredging the Pool.

The Trust had advised that the urgent priority in the short term was the implementation of phase three of the moorings development. Silt and weeds had accumulated faster than anticipated with the result that there was insufficient depth of water in parts of the moorings, such that some vacant moorings could not be re-let. Other works also requiring urgent attention were continued silting and the deterioration of the South Bank.

The Council’s Chief Finance Officer had undertaken a financial assessment of the Trust’s finances, which indicated that the Trust would have sufficient resources to be able to finance a loan from the Council to fund phase three of the moorings development.

Members acknowledged the significant work that the Brayford Trust had done in relation to the maintenance of the Brayford Pool over the years and hoped that the Council’s offer would be acceptable to the Trust.