Agenda item

25/00043 - Old Rectory Business Centre Management Contract

Minutes:

  1. Mr King and Mr Mark Reeves, Project Manager, introduced the report regarding the next steps for the Old Rectory Business Centre in Northfleet. A previous decision had been taken to dispose of the site as a going concern with a 9-month contract extension put in place that was due to expire in August 2025. The report proposed an extension of the current management contract and procurement of management services to November 2026 whilst the disposal decision continues to be progressed.
  2. In response to comments and questions from Members the discussion covered the following:
  • The decision to dispose of the asset as a going concern was endorsed at a previous meeting of the Cabinet Committee and taken by the Cabinet Member, following a wider options appraisal and consideration of KCC’s financial circumstances. Due to the complexities of disposing it as a going concern a 15 month extension was now being proposed to take forward the original decision.
  • A motion was explored, as initially proposed by Ms Nolan and seconded by Mr Stepto, to recommend to the Cabinet Member that the tenants are asked if they wished to form a management company themselves and that alternative options to the disposal of the site be explored - following discussions among the Committee and the provision of clarifications from Officers as to the decision details and assurances from the Cabinet Member that the comments would be noted and taken into account as part of the decision-making, the Members were satisfied to proceed without a formal recommendation on this point.
  • Further comments were also noted on the protection of individual tenant’s agreements and the potential lower financial return for KCC, if the site proceeds to be sold as a going concern, in line with the existing decision.
  • Members were assured that selling the site as a going concern ensured that the contract would protect the existing tenants and the site’s status as a business centre. The benefit of this offsets the one- off capital gained by KCC from a potential outright sale.
  • Ms Nolan proposed, but found no seconder for, a specific recommendation that option 2 (as set out in the reports) be explored further.
  1. RESOLVED that the Growth, Economic Development and Communities Cabinet Committee made comments and endorsed the Cabinet Member for Economic Development & Coastal Regeneration to:
  • APPROVE the extension of current contractual arrangements for three months from (1 September 2025) to (30 November 2025) and undertake a procurement process to secure management services for a further 12 months with extension clauses to 30 November 2026 to allow time to undertake the disposal and ensure that any new owner has the option of an existing management company in place.
  • CONFIRM the decision to dispose of the Old Rectory Business Centre in Northfleet as a going concern as detailed in decision 24/00083. Page 47 Agenda Item 9
  • DELEGATE authority to the Director of Growth and Communities, working with the Director for Infrastructure in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Coastal Regeneration to exercise relevant contract extensions and oversight of a procurement process and enter into relevant contracts or legal agreements.
  • DELEGATE authority to the Director of Growth and Communities to take other relevant actions, including but not limited to finalising the terms of and entering into required contracts or other legal agreements, as necessary to implement the decision to extend and reprocure management services; as shown at Appendix A

 

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