Issue - meetings

New Council Depot Proposals

Meeting: 19/10/2020 - Executive Committee (Item 5)

New Council Depot Proposals

To consider the report of the Head of Community Services.

Minutes:

Having regard to the views expressed by the Proper Officer regarding the public interest test, that on balance the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information and that the report should be exempt.

 

RESOLVED that the public be excluded whilst this item of business is transacted as it is likely there would be a disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 14, Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act, 1972 (as amended).

 

Consideration was given to the joint report of the Head of Community Services and Team Manager, Street Scene.

 

The Corporate Director Regeneration and Community Services advised that report provided progress on the development of a new Council Depot. It outlined suitable candidate sites to be explored which would be taken forward as part of the next stage to develop an Outline Business Case. The Corporate Director added that the current depot had an estimated site area of approximately 15,500 square metres and housed a number of services.

 

Due to the cost to refurbish the existing depot site it was felt that alternative sites should also be explored. The Council looked at work undertaken in other authorities where similar facilities had been built. The Council were continually looking to meet the challenges of the Zero Carbon targets set out for the public sector which included the Council’s buildings and how the Council operated their services.

 

The Corporate Director further spoke to the report and outlined the potential collaborative opportunities, the review undertaken to determine the future requirements, fleet size and initial design stages. The Corporate Director noted that in order to reach a preferred location from sites explored we measured against an options appraisal with criteria measured against each site in terms of size, access, location, collaboration opportunities and staff on site.

 

The Corporate Director further referred the Executive to the options for recommendations and noted Option 2 as the preferred option.

 

An overview of discussions at the Community Services Scrutiny Committee was provided and it was noted that a request had been made to look at a location on the Works Site. It was reported that this had not been an amendment to the report, however the Executive agreed that the Corporate Director Regeneration and Community Services undertake the necessary investigations as a matter of urgency on the location brought forward and report back findings appropriately.

 

RESOLVED accordingly.

 

The Executive Member for Environment welcomed the report and the support to be provided from WRAP. The project would link with green energy and carbon neutral projects and felt that this was an exciting opportunity to be taken forward

 

RESOLVED, subject to the foregoing, that the report which contained information relating to the financial/business affairs of persons other than the Authority be accepted and Option 2 with the request to look at the site brought forward by the Community Services Scrutiny Committee be approved and the information contained in the report be noted.