Parking revenue from council owned car parks is to be paid to Parkway owners SLI as part of an agreement between the council and SLI. All parking revenue from Newbury Town Centre car parks that are owned by the council will be split 50-50 between the Council and SLI. It's worth noting that parking revenue brings in around £2m a year for the council, and I'm sure the majority of that comes from Newbury Town Centre.
Who agreed this? Shouldn't that parking revenue belong to the taxpayers? At what meeting did our elected members agree this decision? I've asked the council for an explanation, they have told me I will get a reply within 20 working days. Is anyone who posts here able to shed any more light on this?
Many decisions by WBC have been short sighted or just plain dumb - but, if true, this one takes the biscuit. I thought the deal with SLI to give them a large tract of very valuable development land in the middle of town in return for £1 was a poor one, but was just about justified by a deal to earn £350k £300k a year from the Parkway car park.
I thought the decision to pay SLI £1,000,000 to include some affordable homes, rather than hold them to the original deal in which SLI would fund them, was a mark of desperation by WBC.
The subsequent way they allowed SLI to remove the main public space from the development and cover it with a 60s style concrete monstrosity was just feeble.
Now you are telling me that the West Berks taxpayers will be subsidising SLI to the tune of £700k+ instead of receiving the anticipated £300k!!!!
You couldn't make it up - no - hang on - you are making it up - aren't you? You do realise it's not April 1st?
My email to Nick Carter (which has been passed to an information officer to deal with under FOI):
Dear Nick,
I would like you to launch an investigation into the Parkway development and various decisions made throughout the lifespan of the project. I would like to know:
a) How much (if anything) was paid from public money to Debenhams
b) How much the s106 contributions were reduced for SLI versus what was promised in the initial application
c) How much the land that Parkway stands on was sold for and whether it is deemed value for money for the local taxpayer
d)How much the council has paid towards affordable housing and how many units are included in the development versus what was promised in the initial application
e) What process was used to select SLI as the developer and whether the value they have delivered is better than what others proposed
f) How much parking revenue the council will receive from SLI
g) How much revenue the council will have to pay SLI from parking charges in council car parks and an explanation as to why this is proposed
h) How much income has the council made from the project (sale of land, s106 payments, other revenue)
i) How much money has the council given to SLI in total
j) What was the commercial land value of the land sold to SLI at the time the sale was agreed
I think in order for the results to be taken seriously, a senior officer from a neighbouring authority may be best placed to carry out the review. I will be supporting Parkway now that it is here and I think it will be a valuable asset for the town if it is successful. Despite my support for the facility, I have serious concerns about the way the project materialised and believe that only an investigation will dismiss the concerns that I and others may have. When elected, Graham Jones and the Conservatives promised an end to complicated, back room deals like the cinema agreement that the Lib Dems had originally put in place. We now know that the cinema deal at the Kennet Centre and the Parkway deal are far more complicated that the Lib Dems could have ever imagined, and it's only proper that there is a full explanation as to why we are in this position.
I trust that this enquiry will be dealt with promptly and with the respect it deserves.
I have tried to make my own enquiries on this today through various methods and contacts. Lots of promises of "I/we'll get back to you" but so far a deafening silence. Even user23 appears to have been withdrawn for a firmware upgrade.
I have tried to make my own enquiries on this today through various methods and contacts. Lots of promises of "I/we'll get back to you" but so far a deafening silence. Even user23 appears to have been withdrawn for a firmware upgrade.
Perhaps he is out trick or treating?
I've been working, a strange concept to those who spend their days posting on the Internet it seems.
Can you explain how silence can be deafening please? It seems a nonsensical phrase to me.
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