Agenda item

(Leisure and Community Services Portfolio Holder) to consider the attached report (C-017-2018/19).

Decision:

1.         (i) That the Cabinet seek a Supplementary Capital Estimate from the Council in the sum of £225,000 to meet unanticipated costs in relation to the construction of Waltham Abbey Leisure Centre and other Leisure Centre refurbishments at Loughton Leisure Centre and Epping Sports Centre, and

(ii) That in addition, a further Supplementary Capital Estimate was sought from Council in the sum of £475,000 to undertake the partial demolition of the vacant buildings on the former Junior School site in St John’s Road, Epping, and also to undertake site investigation surveys.

2.         (i) That the income received from PfP as part of their monthly payment was reduced by £161,000 over the remaining period of the financial year to mitigate their loss of membership income due to them from the Council’s previous contractor SLM; and

(ii) That the Council actively seeks the recovery of the £161,000 under the previous contract with SLM.

3.         That Cabinet approved the cost of undertaking an options appraisal for the replacement of leisure facilities in the District in the sum of £20,000 to be funded from within existing resources.

The Leisure and Community Services Portfolio Holder introduced the report on leisure management contract finances.

After a competitive dialogue procurement process, the Council appointed Places for People Leisure Ltd (PfP) as its partner for the development and management of its Leisure facilities.  Under the terms of the 20 year contract, Places for People on a design build basis, had constructed a new Leisure Centre at Waltham Abbey and undertaken significant refurbishment and extension projects at Ongar, Epping and Loughton Leisure Centres. This report sought additional unanticipated capital expenditure arising from the construction works.

In addition, the report outlined a course of action to address an outstanding contractual issue arising from the hand-over from the previous contractor SLM with regard to up-front membership fees, to the value of £161,000 which was still outstanding to Places for People.

Finally, the report also highlighted the Statement of Common Ground between the District Council and Sport England and specifically the requirement to undertake further feasibility work to support the relocation/provision of any future Leisure facilities.

Councillor Jon Whitehouse asked to hear more about the demolition of the site and the timescale envisioned and also, once the demolition had taken place how would the site be used. The Acting Chief Executive said one of the reasons to request finance to demolish the site was that the site was proving difficult to secure. As for demolition, they hoped to have a contractor by the end of the calendar year with the work completed by the end of the financial year. There was no obvious use for the site in the short term, but they were looking at temporary car parking if it proved to be possible.

Councillor Mohindra congratulated members and officers involved in grabbing this opportunity to progress this key site. Councillor C Whitbread added that officers had moved very quickly on this opportunity presented to us as well as the Town Council.

Councillor Bedford asked about having a new leisure centre in the district. Would a new contract have to be renegotiated with PfP for this? He was told that the contract was written with the view that at some point there would be a new leisure centre, so there was no need to renegotiate. Councillor Bedford asked if North Weald was still in consideration. The Acting Chief Executive said this was reliant on the outcome of the study asked for in recommendation 3. What’s changed was that the St John’s Road site had not been an option previously; so we will have to wait and see the outcome of the study.

Councillor Bedford noted that as a shift in location was being considered, residents in Ongar were worried if their site would close. The Acting Chief Executive replied that under the Local Plan there was no intention to have it allocated for residential redevelopment. But given its age and condition an objective view will have to be taken on the centre.

Decision:

1.         (i) That the Cabinet seek a Supplementary Capital Estimate from the Council in the sum of £225,000 to meet unanticipated costs in relation to the construction of Waltham Abbey Leisure Centre and other Leisure Centre refurbishments at Loughton Leisure Centre and Epping Sports Centre, and

(ii) That in addition, a further Supplementary Capital Estimate was sought from Council in the sum of £475,000 to undertake the partial demolition of the vacant buildings on the former Junior School site in St John’s Road, Epping, and also to undertake site investigation surveys.

2.         (i) That the income received from PfP as part of their monthly payment was reduced by £161,000 over the remaining period of the financial year to mitigate their loss of membership income due to them from the Council’s previous contractor SLM; and

(ii) That the Council actively seeks the recovery of the £161,000 under the previous contract with SLM.

3.         That Cabinet approved the cost of undertaking an options appraisal for the replacement of leisure facilities in the District in the sum of £20,000 to be funded from within existing resources.

Reasons for Proposed Decision:

Places for People Leisure Ltd were contractually entitled to additional costs over their agreed capital contributions for the new Leisure Centres and facility refurbishments. Similarly, they were also entitled to receive the outstanding Membership Fees.  This report sought to address these issues. 

The Council could elect not to clear the St John’s Road site in the short-term and postpone survey works. However, this would not mitigate security costs and would delay any potential redevelopment.

Other Options for Action:

There was no alternative course of action with respect to the additional capital contributions. However, the Council could elect not to pursue SLM for the outstanding membership fees; however, this would result in a loss to the Council.