Council and democracy

Croydon prepares to pick a partner for new regeneration wave

Cabinet approval for an officer recommendation on Monday 9 June will signal the start of a process to draw up a partnership agreement that involves the council as a 50:50 partner. The aim is to formally sign a ground-breaking deal in October.

JLPD emerged as favourite following a competitive dialogue bidding process which initially attracted interest from over 80 parties and led to 19 serious expressions of interest. Final evaluation was scored across a number of categories including actual development proposals, the approach to partnership, and the financial offer. 

Creation of an urban regeneration vehicle (URV) is intended to maximise the value of publicly-owned assets by sharing in profitable development that will itself involve building a series of new schemes. Involving a private sector investment partner would result in Croydon being one of the UK's first local authorities to copy the formula commonly and successfully used by regional development agencies.

Through setting up a limited liability partnership (LLP) in which the council and its selected private sector investment partner would each have a 50% stake (through the authority's land assets and the partner's cash), the council will be able to ensure regeneration takes place in the way it wants and to realise much greater value from the proceeds.

Croydon sees the venture as a natural response to the Government's drive for councils to adopt a more commercial approach to use of public assets. Nationally, pressure is growing for councils to make better use of their property and land holdings to promote regeneration. With both land and equity in Croydon's regeneration vehicle, other sites could be acquired putting the council in an even stronger position to influence the next chapter of the borough's development. The URV could also potentially be used in future to resolve other sites, including the Fairfield Halls, thus securing the future of the town's premier entertainment venue. 

Initially, however, the council expects to place four assets in the first tranche of development opportunities. These are Taberner House, the council's 40-year-old skyscraper headquarters; the council's 1960's offices in Fell Road; College Green, including the college's arts teaching block as well as the underground and multi-storey car parks and the open space; and the Tamworth annex site in West Croydon, the former school that is currently being used by the Primary Care Trust. Most of the buildings involved have a limited life in their present form and are presenting increasing maintenance liabilities. All would benefit from regeneration or redevelopment. 

As well as maximising the development potential of its assets, the council expects to obtain a new headquarters that would meet modern office requirements, be future-proof in terms of environmental considerations, and include a purpose-designed one-stop for visitors and a registry that would allow wedding ceremonies immediate access to The Queen's Gardens.

Said cabinet member for regeneration, Councillor Tim Pollard: "It won't have escaped anyone's notice that some of the most successful companies in the UK are property developers. The council has for some time sold sites to the highest bidder only for developers to take all the profit when land is developed. The solution we expect to engineer with John Laing will ensure we get a big slice of the future action and make a lasting contribution to Croydon's regeneration. By taking on a commercial investor as a partner in a regeneration vehicle, the council will be able to maximise the value of its assets and drive the way in which the next phase of borough-wide regeneration unfolds.

"As a valuable spin-off, it also means we solve the council's own accommodation problem. 

"Although there's still a lot of detailed work to be done before formally agreeing a partnership deal with John Laing, we're confident this can be achieved by early autumn."