Agenda item

REPORT OF THE CULTURE AND FACILITIES SERVICE MANAGER AND PRINCIPAL ESTATES SURVEYOR

To consider the proposed acquisition of Unit 1, City Park, Letchworth Garden City on a long leasehold basis at a peppercorn rent (i.e. zero) for the Museum Storage Facility on the terms set out in the Part 1 and Part 2 reports.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet approved the acquisition of Unit 1 City Park, Letchworth Garden City on the terms set out in the Part 2 report and noting the detailed Budget Cost Plan for adapting, fitting out and upgrading the building for museum storage.

REASON FOR DECISION: A limited number of modern buildings of this age and size become available to purchase or lease in Letchworth Garden City and surrounding area, particularly one on a long lease at a peppercorn rent for the full term, with an expiry date in 2150. Unit 1 includes land fronting Works Road and to the side of the unit, plus a large part of the car park with the ability to erect a fence to separate the area from the rest of the car park used by adjoining units. In addition, the Council already owns the long leasehold interest in Unit 3 City Park, Letchworth Garden City, having acquired it in June 2016 with that building being used for general archive storage, IT servers, offsite disaster recovery, careline business continuity and legal department storage.

Audio recording – 2 hours 24 minutes and 2 seconds

In the absence of the Chair of Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Councillor Tom Tyson presented the referral on this item.

Councillor Tamsin Thomas, as Executive Member for Enterprise and Arts, presented the report entitled ‘Museum Storage Options – Part 1’ and advised that:

·         This report followed the Museum Storage Options Appraisal report presented at Cabinet on 19 November 2024.

·         Following Cabinet on 19 November, Officers were tasked to look at viable options one of which was to find a suitable storage facility.

·         A suitable storage facility had now been located, and approval was requested for the proposed acquisition of Unit 1 City Park, Letchworth Garden City.

·         Unit 1 was a 25-year-old open plan warehouse and was in good condition as reported following a full building survey.

·         Officers had submitted a conditional offer which had been accepted subject to approval.

·         The warehouse would need refitting to preserve the museum collection.

·         The property was being sold with a long-term lease of 150 years, with 100 years remaining.

·         This property offered a reduced financial commitment and would allow the sale of the current site in Bury Mead, Hitchin.

·         Facilities of this type did not come onto the market often and it was an attractive position.

The Cultural Services Manager expressed her thanks to Councillor Tamsin Thomas and the team as this solution would solve all the storage problems.

Following a question from Councillor Ian Albert, the Cultural Services Manager advised that she had been in touch with the Arts Council regarding a grant, but as this project would be starting so quickly, there was not enough time to wait. Lower lever applications of up to £250k were more likely to be considered sooner and the Heritage Lottery Fund was a good place to apply for such a smaller grant.

The following Members took part in the debate:

·       Councillor Ian Albert

·       Councillor Dave Winstanley

·       Councillor Val Bryant

Points raised during the debate included:

·       Expression of thanks to Councillor Tamsin Thomas and all Officers involved for the hard work on this project.

·       This solution would provide the Council with a fantastic museum building and also provide good storage facilities for the growing collection.

In response to points raised, Councillor Tamsin Thomas advised that although now it was merely a building on an industrial estate, the end result would be phenomenal. The museum was very important to the residents of North Hertfordshire and this new building would allow for it to be used by academic and community groups in ways that had not been previously possible. 

Councillor Tamsin Thomas proposed and Councillor Ian Albert seconded and, following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED: That Cabinet approved the acquisition of Unit 1 City Park, Letchworth Garden City on the terms set out in the Part 2 report and noting the detailed Budget Cost Plan for adapting, fitting out and upgrading the building for museum storage.

REASON FOR DECISION: A limited number of modern buildings of this age and size become available to purchase or lease in Letchworth Garden City and surrounding area, particularly one on a long lease at a peppercorn rent for the full term, with an expiry date in 2150. Unit 1 includes land fronting Works Road and to the side of the unit, plus a large part of the car park with the ability to erect a fence to separate the area from the rest of the car park used by adjoining units. In addition, the Council already owns the long leasehold interest in Unit 3 City Park, Letchworth Garden City, having acquired it in June 2016 with that building being used for general archive storage, IT servers, offsite disaster recovery, careline business continuity and legal department storage.