In 2021, the Policy & Resources Committee approved the Council pursuing a

comprehensive redevelopment of the site (including Heather House and the Pavilion Building). This has led to a successful planning application for a new community centre on the Heather House site and a new-build residential scheme of 11 dwellings on the Pavilion Building site. To help finance the new community centre, Officers are seeking approval for a CIL Community Contribution of £956,420. The scheme is included in the capital programme, approval is needed for the works cost and to appoint the contractor to deliver the scheme, as per the planning application, and to proceed with a tender exercise to procure a management provider for the proposed new community centre.

RESOLVED: That

1.  The works costs for Heather House and the Pavilion building sites be approved, in accordance with the approved planning application.

2.  The Head of Mid Kent Legal Services, in consultation with the Lead Member, be authorised to negotiate and complete all necessary deeds and agreements arising from or ancillary to the application for planning permission.

3.  The Director of Finance, Resources and Business Improvement, be given delegated authority, to appoint a contractor to carry out the necessary building works for the community centre and residential units; and

4.  The Director of Finance, Resources and Business Improvement be given delegated authority, in consultation with the Lead Members for Leisure and Arts and Communities and Public Engagement, to approve the tender exercise for the procurement and appointment of an operator of the new community centre.

Heather House is the only community facility still owned and directly managed by the Council. It is located on Bicknor Road backing onto the Parkwood Recreation Ground, providing facilities to enable indoor sports and leisure activities. It is currently only used by Maidstone Boxing Club. Adjacent is the Pavilion Building, currently on a short short-term lease to the Weavering Warriors Rugby Club, that can be ended at any time, by either party, on giving two months’ notice.

Planning permission has been agreed for a new community centre on the Heather House site, and a new-build residential scheme of 11 houses on the Pavilion Building site. Comprising of 4 First Homes and 7 private rented houses, giving the best financial return. Whilst the initial approval is for 7 x private rented houses, Officers will use best endeavours to secure grant from Homes England in due course, at a level that would allow the delivery of those homes for Affordable Rent.

First Homes are discounted market sale housing, meeting the definition of

‘affordable housing’. These units must be discounted by a minimum of

30% against the market value. After the discount the First Sale price

must be no higher that £250,000. First Homes are the government’s

preferred discounted tenure and should account for at least 25% of all

affording housing delivered.

The proposal for the Pavilion Building site is a mixed tenure scheme of 11

houses (7 for private market rent and 4 for First Home). The following

table shows the schedule of new accommodation:

The Scheme

Full scheme information is detailed within the Design and Access

Statement that was submitted with the Planning Application.

This project will significantly improve the image, visual appearance and

public perception of the community centre and contribute towards the

regeneration of the area. This scheme will see the delivery of much

needed new, high-quality housing and a new modern multi-purpose

community facility within the existing footprint of the Heather House &

Pavilion sites.

The new 580m2 community centre, is designed to accord with the latest

accessibility and energy efficiency standards, resulting in lower long-term

maintenance and running costs. The facility will appeal to many clubs and

organisations, providing opportunity for local community involvement of all

ages. It will include one court sports/community social use hall, the

height of which will be capable of accommodating badminton, a kitchen,

storage, bar and social lounge area, as well as further ancillary areas that

will provide for field-based sports. The community centre has been

designed in accordance with guidance produced by Sports England for community halls, together with Rugby Football Union design guide for

changing rooms and clubhouses. The scheme will increase more usable

open space provision by repositioning the new community centre further

away from the area of ancient woodland on the southern/western

boundary. Establishing the required buffer zone of 15m and giving back

areas of existing small underused open space taken up on the Pavilion

Building development site area.

The housing is within close proximity of local facilities and transport

services. The development will contribute to the surrounding built

environment. The high-quality family homes all meet Nationally Described

Space Standards, providing well-designed active frontage with plenty of

green spaces, private parking, and rear gardens. Natural daylight has been

a key consideration, which has informed the orientation of the homes,

position of the gardens and location of glazing. An energy consultant was

appointed to provide guidance on achieving the necessary thermal

requirements and energy efficiency measures. The residential scheme will

benefit from 4 photovoltaic panels per home, these will provide renewable

energy from sunlight.

Financial Commitments

The financial summaries for both sites are shown at Exempt Appendix 1 & 2. There is a negative NPV of -£756,223 on the new community centre,

however, a high NPV of £1,412,927 on the residential element of the

scheme. The amalgamated scheme for both the community centre and

residential site is positive, based on a private market rent and First Homes

sale. This demonstrates a financially viable scheme and meets our

minimum financial criteria.

The procurement exercise has provided a scheme cost for the entire

development, details of the costs from the preferred contractor are

detailed in the exempt appendix.

The Council have submitted a successful bid for Land Release Funding, for

the proposed redevelopment of the entire site totalling £100,000. This will

go towards the demolition costs of both buildings. The Land Release Fund

is a cross-government initiative between the Ministry of Housing,

Communities and Local Government and One Public Estate which is

delivered in partnership by the Local Government Association and the

Cabinet Office.

The financial model assumes a successful CIL bid of £956,420; that won’t

be determined until the summer. In the event that this is unsuccessful,

monies from the £5m Infrastructure funding in the recently adopted

capital program, will be utilised to provide subsidy to the community

centre.

The Policy & Resources Committee report from February 2021 (attached

background paper) detailed that income from the new housing, could

provide cross-subsidy for the new community centre. However, this will

no longer be the case as the profitability of market sale has been eroded

by build cost inflation. Meaning that private sale is no longer the most

attractive tenure for the non-First Homes units.

Contract Procurement

A procurement exercise has been undertaken to source a single contractor, to enable maximum efficiency to be gained from running the community centre and residential builds concurrently.

The tender documentation was issued via the Kent Business Portal as an open tender invitation on 31 October 2023. Completed tender

documentation was returned by three contractors. The final analysis of the

tender return was carried out by FFT in February.

Based on the tender submission, Officers have a preferred contractor they believe is the most competitive and advantageous of the three tenders

received. The preferred contractor submitted a build programme estimating start on site in November 2023, completion of the new community centre in November 2024 and houses in June 2025.

A tender exercise to procure an operator for the community centre is the next step. Officers are looking to grant a 25-year lease (contracted out of the landlord and tenant act 1954) on a fully repairing and insuring basis, to an organisation to operate and manage the facility, for the benefit of the

local community. The Council would expect that the facility would be

available to hire at reasonable rates to the wider community, for example

private parties through to community activity groups.

Officers intend to proceed via a formal tender approach, contacting

potential interested parties to inform them of the tender exercise and

encouraging them to make an application. The tender exercise would seek

interest from suitably experienced organisations who can manage and

maintain the building in a way that will benefit the whole community.

Officers will require that the tender bids show detailed information

regarding the day-to-day operation of the building, planned activities / use

and included details of opening hours. The submissions will need to show

an understanding of compliance with Health and Safety and all other

statutory regulations. It is anticipated that the tender pack will be

published on the Kent Business Portal in the summer of 2023, with an

estimated period of eight weeks from tender start to the lease being awarded.

Option 1: the preferred option, to appoint a contractor to build out the

entire scheme, comprising of the new community centre and 11 houses, as

per the planning application and to procure a managing agent for the

operation of the community facility.

Option 2: Do nothing, leave Heather House community centre and the

Pavilion building site to slowly decay. Whilst keeping the Rugby club on a

short-term lease. This is not recommended as there would continue to be

uncertainty as to the future of the building and site.

Option 3: Demolish both Heather House and the Pavilion building. The

potential loss of a community centre could impose a significant and negative

impact on the existing users and surrounding neighbourhood and lose the

opportunity to bring about social change and improve the quality of life in

the local area.