Agenda item

Guildford Park Road Redevelopment - Appointment of Development Partner

Decision:

That the following recommendation be approved by Council (23 July 2024):

That the Council approves:

(1) The updated Outline Business Case, provided at Appendix 1 to the report submitted to the Executive, setting out the preferred way forward for the project, which is based on the appointment of Wates Construction Limited as the Council’s development partner, and who will be responsible for delivering the scheme under a Development Agreement.

(2) Pursuant to the procurement process outlined in the report, the appointment of Wates Construction Limited.

(3) Expenditure of up to £39.7M from the HRA Capital Fund to fund the project from this point forward to completion.

(4) The delegation of authority to the Strategic Director (Place), in consultation with the Lead Councillor for Housing and Community and the Lead Councillor for Regeneration, to enter into all contracts and such other legal agreements as are necessary to appoint Wates Construction Limited.

(5) The delegation of authority to the Strategic Director (Place), in consultation with the Lead Councillor for Housing and Community and the Lead Councillor for Regeneration, to grant such approvals as are necessary to service the Council’s responsibility to provide approvals under the Development Agreement.

(6) The delegation of authority to the Strategic Director (Place), in consultation with the Lead Councillor for Housing and Community and the Lead Councillor for Regeneration, to dispose of land and buildings in accordance with the requirements under the Development Agreement.

(7) The delegation of authority to the Strategic Director (Place), in consultation with the Lead Councillor for Housing and Community and the Lead Councillor for Regeneration, to enter into all contracts and such other legal agreements connected with the Guildford Park Road housing project as may be necessary in compliance with Contract Procedure Rules and within the approved budget.

Reasons:

· The Guildford Park Road redevelopment is a key scheme within the Housing Revenue Account Business Plan that will deliver a significant number of additional homes in the town centre.

· The recommendation will support the delivery of the Council’s emerging Corporate Strategy (2024 – 2034) by providing and facilitating housing that people can afford.

· The project will see the redevelopment of a brownfield site, allocated for housing in the Local Plan.

· The preferred delivery route for the Guildford Park site is partnership delivery, via a Development Agreement, as set out in the Strategic Outline Business Case approved by the Executive in March 2023.

· As demonstrated in the accompanying Business Case and Tender Report, the Council has undertaken a compliant procurement exercise, and following evaluation and moderation of the final tender submissions, Officers are now seeking approval to enter into a Development Agreement with Wates Construction Limited for the delivery of the Guildford Park redevelopment.

Options considered and rejected:

To not endorse the Officer recommendation to appoint Wates Construction as the Council’s Development Partner and associated delegations.

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None.

Minutes:

In March 2023, the Executive gave authority to a procurement exercise to secure a Development Partner, to support the Council in delivering a housing scheme at the Guildford Park site.

A procurement process was initiated in June 2023, which sought to identify a suitable Development Partner via a competitive dialogue and tender process. Final tenders were received in April 2024, and Officers and the appointed consultant team have evaluated the submissions received and identified the preferred bidder.

The Executive considered a report that sought approval to enter into a contract with Wates as the preferred bidder. Wates would be responsible for developing a new planning application for the site, securing planning consent, funding the non-affordable elements of the scheme and delivering the scheme in its entirety. The Council would acquire the affordable housing delivered by the scheme in accordance with the agreement. The parties would closely collaborate throughout the project delivery phase to deliver a high-quality residential development, with policy compliant amounts of affordable housing, on this under-utilised site. The updated Outline Business Case accompanied the report.

The Executive noted the long history of the site and positive progress was welcomed. The recommendations were supportive of strategic aims of the Council’s corporate priorities.

RESOLVED: