Agenda item

(Housing Portfolio Holder) To consider the attached report (C-015-2017/18).

(Housing Portfolio Holder) To consider the attached, revised Equality Impact Assessment alongside the report.

(1)        That the Housing Repairs Service and the Housing Assets Team be relocated to the Oakwood Hill Depot, Loughton to co-locate with the existing Fleet Operations and Grounds Maintenance Services at an estimated cost of the works (excluding fees) of £755,000 funded from the Housing Revenue Account (HRA);

(2)        That the Capital costs of the relocation be funded from the existing budget allocation of £3.2million for the provision of the Repairs and Maintenance Hub;

(3)        That, once assessed by Price Waterhouse Coopers as part of the Stage 2 Accommodation Review, the fit-out costs of the open plan area, based on an agile working environment, be also funded from the existing capital budget provision;

(4)        That the remaining existing capital budget provision be deleted from the Capital Programme to realise a capital saving;

(5)        That a separate report be considered by the Housing Portfolio Holder on the appointment of a multi-discipline Consultancy Service to oversee the detailed design, procurement process and contract management, with any fees being funded from the existing capital provision;

(6)        That the Council’s Country Care Service and the Nursery Service no longer be relocated to the Oakwood Hill Depot as previously planned and that an alternative venue be sought elsewhere in the District for these services;

(7)        That a planning application be submitted for the required off-site parking for staff and visitors at the Oakwood Hill Depot during working hours;

(8)        That the off-site parking be made available to residents of the Oakwood Hill Estate and visitors to the Roding Valley Nature Reserve free of charge outside office hours; and

(9)        That a report be submitted to a future meeting of the Cabinet by the Director of Neighbourhoods on the most appropriate future use for the Council’s land at Blenheim Way in North Weald.

In the absence of the Housing Portfolio Holder, who had given her apologies for the meeting, the Leader of Council presented a report on the relocation of the Housing Repairs Service and Housing Assets Team to the Oakwood Hill Depot.

The Leader reminded the Cabinet that it had previously agreed to relocate the Housing Repairs Service and the Housing Assets Team to a new purpose-build hub at Blenheim Way in North Weald, at an estimated cost of around £3.2million. However, it was subsequently identified that, subject to some alterations to the building along with the provision of off-site staff parking, the Oakwood Hill Depot could be used to accommodate the Housing Repairs Service and the Housing Assets Team, co-located with the Grounds Maintenance and Fleet Operations Services. The costs of achieving the co-location had been estimated at £755,000 inclusive of a contingency sum, but excluding fees and office fit-out costs for agile working.

The Leader stated that it was originally planned for the Council’s CountryCare and Nursery Teams to relocate to the depot at Oakwood Hill; however, this would not be possible if the Housing Repairs Service and Housing Assets team relocated to the Depot. An alternative option had been identified at Townmead Depot and it had previously been agreed to find the cost of this relocation from the capital receipt generated by the sale of Pyrles Lane Nursery.

The Leader reported that it would be necessary to provide an area of off-street parking for staff vehicles and an assessment had been made that a minimum of 75 parking spaces would be required. An suitable area of land had been identified on the Oakwood Hill Housing Estate, adjacent to but not in the Roding Valley Nature Reserve, but planning permission would be required and it was recommended that a planning application be submitted. It would be necessary to introduce a controlled parking zone restricting use of the spaces to Council staff vehicles during normal working hours, but outside of these  hours it was proposed to allow residents and visitors to the Nature Reserve to use these spaces without charge.

Cllr Murray was disappointed that there had been no prior consultation with the Residents Association - who were a recognised consultee - Essex Wildlife Trust or ward Members. He felt that there would have been informal discussions with ward Members if this proposal had been in a different part of the District. The Oakwood Hill Estate was densely populated but the Council proposed to remove the only large green in the vicinity. The Roding Valley Nature Reserve was a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), the only one within the District, and the majority of visitors did not access the site from this location. The parking issues were at the top end of the estate, not the bottom end where the Depot was, and therefore neither the estate nor the Nature Reserve required further parking at this location. The Council had not liaised with the local residents on this issue and Cllr Murray requested that an additional recommendation be agreed to involve the Essex Wildlife Trust in the planning of the proposed staff car park.

Cllr C Roberts informed the Cabinet that the residents of Oakwood Hill Estate were concerned that they would lose their green open space if the plans for the staff car park went ahead, and a petition with 498 signatures on it would be handed in at the end of the meeting. The Green was the largest on the Estate, it was well used by residents and they did not want to lose it. The existing pay-and-display parking spaces were under used and therefore Residents did not need this extra parking at evenings and weekends.

Cllr Philip, Portfolio Holder for Planning & Governance, reminded the Cabinet that the proposed car park was but one recommendation out of nine, and that planning permission would be required before it could be built. Cllr Philip felt that the proposed relocation was a perfectly sensible approach for the Council to take, but was happy to examine other options, and would also be content not to take the green space for staff parking if it was not required.

Cllr C C Pond accepted that the relocation of the two teams to the Oakwood Hill Depot was desirable, but objected to the unnecessary taking of green space to provide staff parking. The cost of building this car park would be approximately £200,000 and the Councillor suggested that all other options should be examined before the planning application was submitted, including the extension of the existing on-street parking.

The Leader reaffirmed that the proposal to relocate the Housing Repairs Service and Housing Assets Team to the depot at Oakwood Hill had been carefully thought through and was a more sensible option than building a Hub in North Weald. The Leader would be happy to preserve the green space and save the cost of building the car parking if there were other options. The Council should perform a proper transport assessment, and the Leader reassured the residents that a proper consultation would form part of the planning application process.

Decision:

(1)        That the Housing Repairs Service and the Housing Assets Team be relocated to the Oakwood Hill Depot, Loughton to co-locate with the existing Fleet Operations and Grounds Maintenance Services at an estimated cost of the works (excluding fees) of £755,000 funded from the Housing Revenue Account (HRA);

(2)        That the Capital costs of the relocation be funded from the existing budget allocation of £3.2million for the provision of the Repairs and Maintenance Hub;

(3)        That, once assessed by Price Waterhouse Coopers as part of the Stage 2 Accommodation Review, the fit-out costs of the open plan area, based on an agile working environment, be also funded from the existing capital budget provision;

(4)        That the remaining existing capital budget provision be deleted from the Capital Programme to realise a capital saving;

(5)        That a separate report be considered by the Housing Portfolio Holder on the appointment of a multi-discipline Consultancy Service to oversee the detailed design, procurement process and contract management, with any fees being funded from the existing capital provision;

(6)        That the Council’s CountryCare Service and the Nursery Service no longer be relocated to the Oakwood Hill Depot as previously planned and that an alternative venue be sought elsewhere in the District for these services;

(7)        That a planning application be submitted for the required off-site parking for staff and visitors at the Oakwood Hill Depot during working hours;

(8)        That the off-site parking be made available to residents of the Oakwood Hill Estate and visitors to the Roding Valley Nature Reserve free of charge outside office hours; and

(9)        That a report be submitted to a future meeting of the Cabinet by the Director of Neighbourhoods on the most appropriate future use for the Council’s land at Blenheim Way in North Weald.

Reasons for Decision:

The decision that was reached by the Cabinet in December 2015 was to construct a new Repairs and Maintenance Hub at a cost of approximately £3.2million at Blenheim Way, North Weald. Co-locating the Housing Repairs Service and Housing Assets Team within an existing Council asset at the Oakwood Hill Depot would cost far less and save the need to construct the new Hub building.

Other Options Considered and Rejected:

To revert to the original decision to construct a Repairs and Maintenance Hub at Blenheim Way, North Weald in line with the Planning Approval already granted; however, this would cost approximately £3.2million.

To retain the fourth Service Bay for future business expansion by Fleet Operations and MOT Service and to construct a stand-alone Repairs Store elsewhere on the site; however, this would incur an estimated additional cost of £450,000.

To keep the Housing Repairs Service at the Epping Depot, thus saving the Council having to spend any money on relocation costs. However, this would prevent, or at the very least significantly harm, the future redevelopment opportunity on the St John’s School redevelopment site and be contrary to the Council’s previous decision, although it would allow for the Council’s CountyCare Service and Nursery Service to relocate to the Oakwood Hill Depot as previously planned.