RESOLVED that: -
(a) Cabinet approve the proposals made in the report and delegate authority to the Chief Executive to approve the necessary legal documents; and
(b) Cabinet note that the URC business plan will be brought to Cabinet for approval no later than October 2021;
RECOMMENDED that: -
(c) Cabinet recommends that Council approve £3.404m of additional resources to support the regeneration programme in 2021/22.
RESOLVED that: -
(d) Cabinet notes the £3.470m of additional resources requested to support the regeneration programme in 2022/23 and £1.331m per annum from 2023/24 onwards;
(e) Cabinet notes that the additional resources for 2022/23 onwards will formally be recommended to Council as part of the 2022/23 budget and Medium-Term Financial Plan Update report in February 2022;
(f) Acknowledge the novation of the development management services agreements for the Bournemouth Development Company (BDC) to Muse Developments Limited as described in the report and approve the Council’s entry into a deed of variation to implement corresponding updates to the Members’ Agreement.
(g) Approve work to be done by BDC to secure the outline planning consent agreed in 2018 including the completion of building demolitions on the Exeter Road site shown at appendix 1 which are derelict, incurring business rates obligations and attracting anti-social behaviour problems and attendant health and safety risks and the commencement of utility diversion and power supply upgrading works.
Note that, on 3 March 2021, the Council received the Heads of Terms of an offer to provide a ‘Town Deal’ for Boscombe Town Centre which was accepted by the Town Deal Board on 24 March 2021 and confirmed with a conditional allocation of project funding on 4th May.
(h) Approve the Town Deal projects agreed with the MHCLG and provide the necessary support to develop these in sufficient detail so that Business Cases can be completed for consideration by the MHCLG by May 2022.
Voting: Unanimous
Portfolio Holder: Regeneration, Economy and Strategic Planning
Reasons
URC proposal
An Urban Regeneration Company has been formed to ensure BCP has the capacity, expertise, and resources to drive investment in regeneration and unlock value from major council owned sites; it will also enable BCP to deliver new homes and create well designed, local neighbourhoods.
Bournemouth Development Company (BDC)
The proposed changes to the governance of BDC flow from an independent review, commissioned by the Council’s Chief Executive. Their aim is to ensure greater clarity of roles, transparency, and accountability in the relationship between the Council and the company.
Bournemouth Towns Fund
In May 2021, the MHCLG confirmed the conditional award of £21.7m to support the regeneration of Boscombe Town Centre. The Council is accountable for these funds and will need to ensure that they are properly invested to deliver the intended outcomes by March 2026. Cabinet approval of the projects agreed with the MHCLG is needed to enable business cases to be developed for each project.