MAIDSTONE BOROUGH COUNCIL
RECORD OF DECISION OF THE CABINET
Decision Made: 26 July 2023
Archbishop's Palace
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Issue for Decision
To seek an agreement to develop plans for use of the Palace as a wedding and events venue.
An extensive process of member and public consultation has been carried out about future use of the Archbishop’s Palace. Following expiry of the former preferred development partner’s exclusivity period, and vacation of the building by Kent County Council, it is appropriate to consider the next steps.
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Decision Made
1. Option 2 of the report, namely to develop plans for use of the Palace as a wedding and events venue, be agreed.
2. Delegated authority be given to the Director of Finance, Resources and Business Improvement in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Corporate Services to select and appoint professional advisers to develop the plans, enter into contracts for applicable services as necessary, and to invite offers from potential operators for a conditional agreement for lease; and
3. Delegated authority be given to the Head of Legal Services to negotiate and complete all necessary legal formalities arising from the purchase of services and invitation for offers as set out above.
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Reasons for Decision
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Alternatives considered and Why Rejected
Option 1: Do nothing. The Council would continue to incur significant annual costs in maintaining the Palace. There would be an opportunity cost, both in financial terms and in failing to allow potential users to benefit from this prime Council asset.
Option 3: Develop alternative plans for use of the Palace
a. Co-working and Serviced Office Space
This option was considered as part of the feasibility study presented to Members in 2021. It would require some internal work to the building, to enable good quality communications links and to provide secure and safe partitioning between offices. If used for this purpose, the Palace would be competing in what is already an active market in Maidstone Town Centre, with potential disadvantages compared with the competition in not being able to provide modern accommodation or extensive parking facilities.
b. Training and Seminar Centre
This option was considered as part of the feasibility study presented to Members in 2021. Like option 3a above, it would require internal work to the building. However, it is not clear that there would be sufficient demand in the market to make this use viable.
c. Mixed Use Culture and Weddings
Members requested that this option be considered in 2021. Whilst they acknowledged the potential of the Palace as a venue for weddings, some members wanted to see a café, an arts space, and exhibition and gallery spaces, which would enable interpretation of the building, to give the widest public access. Such uses would have limited revenue generating potential and would limit the potential of the Palace as a wedding and event venue, by taking up dates in the calendar and/or space at the Palace that would otherwise have commercial potential. Accordingly, this option is unlikely to be economically viable.
d. Boutique Hotel
e. Residential conversion
The option would face a number
of very significant practical obstacles. Residential property values in
central Maidstone make the financial return much less attractive than option
2 of the report. There would be potentially insuperable challenges from a
conservation viewpoint, given the Palace’s Grade 1 listing, in installing the
necessary partitioning, ventilation and other services needed to create units
of residential accommodation. Finally, it would be very difficult to
reconcile members’ and residents’ aspirations for public access with private
residential accommodation.
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Background Papers
None.
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I have read and approved the above decision for the reasons (including possible alternative options rejected) as set out above.
Signed:________ _________________________
Councillor David Burton, Leader of the Council
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Full details of both the report for the decision taken above and any consideration by the relevant Policy Advisory Committee can be found at the following area of the website
Call-In: Should you be concerned about this decision and wish to call it in, please submit a call-in form signed by any three Members to the Proper Officer by: 5pm on Friday 4 August 2023. |