Borough and town councils set to go head-to-head over isle's council offices

A report is recommending Weymouth and Portland Borough Council’s Management Committee to sell the freehold of the building to the town council for just £1, handing over the responsibility of its upkeep.

A report to the committee on Tuesday suggests Portland Town Council (PTC) produces a five year business plan for the site, providing “reasonable confirmation” to the borough council that they are able to undertake the necessary works to address the issue of disabled access to the offices and to be self-funding.

The borough council currently owns the freehold of the office building and pays towards rates, utilities, cleaning and maintenance costs.

The report states that the cost of maintenance and operation of the Portland offices was £23,585 in 2014/15.

It proposes transferring the freehold without any payment, although a nominal sum of £1is included in order to validate the transaction.

It states: “The property was last valued on 1st April 2012 at £190,000 and so the borough council is giving up this asset value. It will also be giving up the outgoings, although a period of transitional relief of one year is being offered.

“The outgoings reached £23,585 in 2014/15 and are budgeted to rise to £25,620 in 2015/16.

"In just over eight years, depending upon the amount of transitional relief agreed, the asset value will have been offset by these expenses and thus the justification for the borough council divesting itself of this asset will have been substantiated.”

The report adds: “The building has a significant repair backlog including roof works, stone work, deterioration to wall panels and heating. These would become the responsibility of Portland Town Council as a result of the transfer.”

PTC is planning a special meeting on Monday night to discuss the plans. A report prepared by PTC states that currently the council offices cannot be used for meetings as there is no disabled access.

The report adds that the building is “not fit for purpose," has been “much neglected from a building maintenance point of view,” that “only part of the building has heating and lighting,” there is an issue with damp and the place requires redecoration both inside and out.

The report states that the borough council have “shown a willingness to transfer some parish council powers to PTC”but adds that there have been “no guarantees” and so the issue of the acquisition of the offices “cannot be considered in isolation from the responsibilities PTC may wish to take on.”

It states: “The borough could demonstrate its good intentions by giving priority to the transfer of services before a deal is reached over the offices.”

It concludes that: “Members are recommended to welcome the purchase of the offices without making a binding agreement and to press ahead with examining the wider strategy PTC wishes to pursue in future.”

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