Agenda item

To consider the draft Council report of the Chief Operating Officer.

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Housing, Transformation and Resources as contained on pages 275 to 361 of the Book of Reports, the purpose of which was to consider the  latest business plan of Tawd Valley Developments Limited (TVDL), which is the Council's wholly owned Development Company.  The report sought comments from the Committee before it is presented to Council on the 14 December 2022.

Comments and questions were raised in respect of the following:-

·         The unknown financial issues in regard to the Junction 4 Project which was included in the Business Plan.

·         Junction 4 was felt to be a commercial development which involved long term financial borrowing and would need approval by Council.

·         The timescales of the Business Plan and the individual schemes within it. 

·         Possibility of Junction 4 remaining in the plan would allow the Council to scrutinise the Scheme.

·         Whether the 13 action points in the LP independent review report of TVDL had been actioned in the Business Plan.

·         That the business plan was felt to be a dynamic business plan by some members of the Committee which would change and evolve over time.

·         A need for a comparison between the building of smaller and larger units on the Junction 4 project.

·         Eco friendly schemes.

·         Site condition survey and the energy performance standards in respect of Junction 4.

·         The Green Shoots Project.

·         The potential impact of the Liverpool freeport area on the Junction 4 project.

·         In connection with freeports, it was felt important to lobby Government to get parts of West Lancashire included in the freeport area.

·         It was felt that the draft Business Plan had plenty of time to grow and adjust moving forward.

·         The risks involved with schemes and the information that should be provided to support them.

·         That  schemes should only be included  in the Business Plan if there was certainty of the costs involved.

·         Schemes that were for developing on Council owned land were considered to be a definite and should be being considered by Council in December, but the Junction 4 Scheme needed to be taken out of the Business Plan.

·         Profit forecasts were discussed.

·         Business rates and empty units.

·         It was pointed out that the business plan report was seeking permission for TVDL to carry on with the plan as included in the report but that separate Council approval would be required for individual Council schemes to commence.

·         Controlling of risks.

·         The time plan, the process, and the need to be getting outline planning permission for Junction 4.

·         Progress made in local partnership work.

·         The number of houses the Council wanted to build and the numbers set out in the Local Plan.

·         Whether the Council could obtain land to build houses on.

·         Building of houses outside of the West Lancashire Borough.

·         Concerns that the loan agreement taken out was not operating on a  commercial basis.

·         Treasury Management.

·         It was felt that a premature Business Plan was going to be presented to Council in December 2022, and that it would be beneficial to bring back to February Council to discuss Housing issues.

RESOLVED:  That the draft business plan be agreed with the exception of the Junction 4 project and, that this be transferred to the appendix showing the pipeline of project opportunities..