Purpose

To decide whether
to dispose of 5 Angel Gate, Harwich.

Content

(a)    
That the freehold disposal of 5 Angelgate Harwich be approved;
 

(b)    
That the selling of the site via auction be
approved, at the agreed guide price and agreed reserved price;
and
 

(c)    
That the Corporate Director (Planning and Community)
be authorised to complete the sale on these and any other terms he
deems appropriate.
 

Reasons for the decision

The
property requires significant work to the structure as well as full
refurbishment to bring the property back to a condition suitable to
meet the standard for housing stock. In the current condition the
property is uninhabitable.
 
The
Council’s Housing Asset Management Plan notes that a
considered approach is taken to disposal of stock that is
disproportionately costly to repair or upgrade to an appropriate
standard.  With this property being
Grade II Listed and in need of significant repairs, disposal is
considered appropriate in the circumstances.
 
With
the same considerations around the heritage listing and the amount
of repair work necessary for the property to be habitable, a sale
by auction is recommended in order to
keep the sale timeframe reasonable and eliminate the possibility of
buyers withdrawing after months of legal work.

Alternative options considered

The following
options were considered and eliminated:

Do nothing: the
property will continue to deteriorate causing nuisance to
neighbours; this will also have a negative impact on the
Council’s reputation
Repair and
refurbish: this has a significant
capital cost and resource implications and is disproportionate to a
single three-bed property in this area.
To sell the
property on the open market via an estate agent: due to condition
of the property, and possible restrictions that come with the
property being Grade II listed, sale in the open market will most
likely be a very time consuming
process.
Demolish and
redevelop: this is not an option because
of the Grade II historic listing.