Conference protest, Stockton cuts cabinet, Coventry sells arena stake…

Council attendance at conference sparks protest
Protestors harangued developers and council representatives attending the Mipim real estate conference in Olympia this week forcing police to “lockdown” the venue, according to the Guardian.  The paper quoted one protestor outside the venue saying the conference was an event where “councils sell off public land behind closed doors.”Boris Johnson spoke at the conference describing London as the “property capital of the world” but added there was a “deep and understandable sense of social injustice” among its residents over house prices. He said the solution was to build “hundreds of thousands” of homes. He said the capital was on target to build 100,000 new homes over the term of his mayoralty. Construction was possible, he said, through investment in transport infrastructure, including the Northern Line extension through Battersea financed by the first TIF – tax increment financing – to be used in London. “That is a great innovation that obviously we hope to be replicating elsewhere,” he added. TIFs used futures gains in taxes from a zoned area to finance development.

The Mipim webite describes the conference as “the first UK property trade show gathering all professionals looking to close deals in the UK property market: investors, developers, local authorities, occupiers, hotel groups, agents and business service providers.”

Stockton downsizes cabinet to cut costs
Cabinet posts are to be cut at Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council in a bid to make savings. A statement from the authority also reveals it is to cut the number of scrutiny committee meetings in a further effort to economise. Cabinet portfolios are to be reduced from nine to seven, making a saving of £24,120 a year, while the scrutiny meeting will be shaved from seven to five gatherings to save £20,100. The moves come as part of budget plans for 2015/16. Council leader Bob Cook, said at a time when budgets were under pressure it was right to “look at the money which is being spent on special responsibility allowances.”

Bedford steps up compulsory purchase of vacant properties
The “blight” of empty homes in Bedford is to be confronted with a £3m fund to compulsory purchase abandoned properties. The money is to be spent by Bedford Borough Council over the next four years in a bid to put homes back into use. Cllr Colleen Atkins said: “An empty property is a wasted property and has a negative impact on the environment and local community when it could be providing a much-needed home for a local person or family.” As much as 80% of empty property owners still live in the borough, according to the council. Bedford recently completed a compulsory purchase order for a property that had stood empty for 14 years.

Coventry sells off stake in football ground
Coventry City Council has cashed in on its ownership of the Ricoh stadium by selling its share in the business to Premiership rugby club Wasps. The former London club will play its first game at the ground in December after acquiring a 50% stake in Arena Coventry Ltd, the company that owns the Ricoh, from the city. A statement from the council said the deal ensures that it “makes a return” on its original £13.7m investment. The deal also guarantees Coventry City Football Club’s continuing tenancy at the ground. Neither Wasps nor the council revealed the value of the arena transaction though at the beginning of October The Telegraph and local paper The Coventry Telegraph speculated it would be for a 90% stake costed at £30m.

Civica wins Coventry ‘Revs & Bens’ contract
Civica has won a three-year deal to manage third party software systems for Coventry City Council winning the work from incumbents Capita. The contract includes managing Capita’s revenues and benefits software for the council as well as document management systems from Northgate Public Services. Tim Savill, head of revenues and benefits at Coventry, said the decision was the right one at a time when the authority was facing “some challenging changes”.

Epping sets aside £1m for land development
A war chest of £1m has been earmarked by Epping Forest District Council to buy land for development as a new town square including business premises, cinema and new homes. The decision is reported by the Epping Forest Guardian following a cabinet meeting on Monday 6 October, which reports the land would be acquired from Essex County Council. Minutes of the meeting show the Epping cabinet agreed to acquire the site in return for land elsewhere and a balance in cash. A supplementary capital estimate of £1m will be recommended to full council for approval.