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No. Item

46.

DECLARATION OF INTERESTS BY COUNCILLORS

Minutes:

The following non-pecuniary declarations of interests were declared:

 

Councillor Brewster in item 10 as Chair of MSDC (Suffolk Holdings) Ltd.

Councillor Gould in item 10 as Director of MSDC (Suffolk Holdings) Ltd.

Councillor Whitehead in item 10 as Director of Gateway 14.

 

47.

MCa/21/20 TO CONFIRM THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 6 SEPTEMBER 2021 pdf icon PDF 224 KB

Minutes:

It was RESOLVED: -

 

That the minutes of the meeting held on the 6 September 2021 be confirmed as a true record.

 

Recorded Vote
TitleTypeRecorded Vote textResult
To vote on confirmation of the minutes of the meeting held on the 6 September 2021 Ad-Hoc Carried
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  • 48.

    TO RECEIVE NOTIFICATION OF PETITIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE COUNCIL'S PETITION SCHEME

    Minutes:

    None received.

     

    49.

    QUESTIONS BY COUNCILLORS

    Minutes:

    None received.

     

    50.

    MATTERS REFERRED BY THE OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY OR JOINT AUDIT AND STANDARDS COMMITTEES

    Minutes:

    There were no matters referred.

     

    51.

    FORTHCOMING DECISIONS LIST

    The latest version of the Forthcoming Decisions List can be view on the following link:

     

    Forthcoming Decisions List -  Mid Suffolk

    Minutes:

    The Forthcoming Decisions List was noted.

     

    52.

    MCa/21/21 CIVIL PARKING ENFORCEMENT (OFF STREET) ANNUAL REPORT 2020/21 pdf icon PDF 366 KB

    Cabinet Member for Environment

    Additional documents:

    Decision:

    It was RESOLVED: -

     

    1.1          That the contents of the report be noted

    1.2          That a Civil Parking Enforcement (off street) report be produced annually each year going forward. 

    REASON FOR DECISION

    To ensure that Members are kept informed of the performance of the Civil Parking Enforcement function.

    Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

    To not provide an update on performance for the first year of Civil Parking Enforcement (off street) – this option was not taken up, due to the clear need for keeping Members informed.

    Any Declarations of Interests Declared: None

    Any Dispensation Granted: None

     

    Minutes:

    52.1         The Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Hadingham introduced the report on behalf of the Cabinet Member for Environment, who was unable to attend the meeting. She outlined the main points in the report.

     

    52.2          Councillor Hadingham proposed the recommendations in the report which was seconded by Councillor Richardson.

     

    52.3          Councillor Whitehead stated that the data included in the report was affected by the Covid-19 lockdown periods during the Pandemic. He asked for the advocacy for the length of time the Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) Officers spent at car parks in Eye.

     

    52.4          The Assistant Director for Environment and Commercial Partnerships explained that the data covered carparks, which had traffic regulations to warrant visits from the CPE Officers. In relation to the distribution of resources for parking enforcement, she hoped to explore this area further in cooperation with Babergh District Council.

     

    52.5          The Assistant Director for Environment and Commercial Partnerships responded to questions from other Members attending the meeting on issues including the expenditure and penalty charges for the previous years, which illustrated the number of enforcements before and after the introduction of CPE, in the relation to the expenditure. In addition, the travel times for CPE officers would be included in future reports.

     

    52.6          Further questions from other Members attending the meeting included issues around refurbishment of carparking machines in Stowmarket and the related effect on the enforcement data in the previous year. 

     

    By a unanimous vote

     

    It was RESOLVED: -

     

    1.1           That the contents of the report be noted.

    1.2           That a Civil Parking Enforcement (off street) report be produced annually each year going forward. 

    REASON FOR DECISION

    To ensure that Members are kept informed of the performance of the Civil Parking Enforcement function.

    Recorded Vote
    TitleTypeRecorded Vote textResult
    To vote on recommendation 3.1 and 3.2 as detailed in report MCa/21/21 Resolution

    1.1          That the contents of the report be noted.

    1.2          That a Civil Parking Enforcement (off street) report be produced annually each year going forward. 

     

    Carried
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  • 53.

    MCa/21/22 COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE LEVY (CIL) - CIL EXPENDITURE PROGRAMME OCTOBER 2021 pdf icon PDF 331 KB

    Cabinet Member for Planning

    Additional documents:

    Decision:

    It was RESOLVED: -

     

    1.1          That the CIL Expenditure Programme (October 2021) and accompanying technical assessment of the CIL Bids – M21-02, M21-05 M21-06 and M21-08 (forming Appendices, A and B) and which included decisions on this CIL Bid as follows be approved: -

    Local Infrastructure Fund

    CIL Bid, Location and Infrastructure Proposed

    Amount of CIL Bid and total cost of the Infrastructure

    Cabinet Decision

    M21-02

    RICKINGHALL

    Provision of All Wheel sports area

     

     

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £20,148.00

    Total costs

    £46,580.00 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-02 for £20,148.00 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

    M21-05

    DEBENHAM COMMUNITY CENTRE

    Provision of new natural lighting and improving the current ventilation and insulation

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £59,994.00

    Total costs of the CIL eligible parts of the project

    £79,992.00 including VAT

    Total costs of the wider project (including repair and maintenance which CIL cannot fund)

    £349,022.00

     

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-05 for £59,994.00 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

    M21-08

    FRAMSDEN

    Provision of Play equipment

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £18,789.20

    Total costs

    £59,482.00 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-08 for £18,789.20 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

     

    Ringfenced Infrastructure Fund (Elmswell)

    M21-06

    ELMSWELL CHAMBERLAYNE HALL

    Provision of Ventilation windows

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £19,593.81

    Total costs

    £26,125.90 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-06 for £19,593.81 from the Ringfenced Infrastructure Fund

     

    1.2   That this CIL Expenditure Programme which included the position in respect of approved CIL Bids from Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 (including Cabinet decisions in June 2021) - (Appendix A Section B) together with details of emerging infrastructure /CIL Bids (Appendix A Section C) be noted and endorsed.

    REASON FOR DECISION

    Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) monies have been collected since the implementation of CIL on the 11th April 2016. The CIL Expenditure Framework was originally adopted in April 2018 and reviewed with amendments adopted on the 18th March 2019,  20th April 2020 and 23rd and 25th March 2021. The CIL Expenditure Framework   requires the production of a CIL Expenditure Programme for each District which contains decisions for Cabinet to make or note on CIL Bids for CIL expenditure. These decisions relating to the expenditure of CIL monies form one of the ways in which necessary infrastructure supporting growth is delivered.

    Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

    There is a diverse spectrum of approaches to CIL expenditure across the country from Unitary Authorities who have absorbed CIL into their individual Capital Programmes to others who ringfence all funds to be spent locally. A range of different approaches was identified in Appendix A of the Framework for CIL Expenditure report provided to Cabinet’s on the 5th and 8th of February 2018 and discussed in full during the workshops with the Joint Member advisory panel. Members adopted the documents set out in paragraph 1.1 above by Council decision in April 2018 which were subsequently reviewed and adopted on the  ...  view the full decision text for item 53.

    Minutes:

    53.1       The Cabinet Member for Planning, Councillor Burn, introduced the report and detailed the CIL Bids.

     

    53.2       Councillor Burn proposed the recommendations 3.1 and 3.2 in the report which was seconded by Councillor Richardson.

     

    53.3       The Assistant Director for Planning and Building Control responded to questions from other Members attending the meeting. He confirmed that it was expected that community projects should be deliverable at the time of the CIL applications otherwise the funding could be sitting in the allocation fund for years. 

    53.4       In response to further questions from other Members attending the meeting the Assistant Director for Planning and Building Control informed Cabinet that some ward members and parish councils were proactive in submitting bids for CIL funding and some parish councils frequently submitted enquiries whilst others submitted very few or none. It was not possible to provide a definite picture. He assured Members that the Council worked closely with those involved in all funding processes.

    53.5       Members debated the issues including the link between CIL developments and the wellbeing of communities, training and engagement for members, attendance at training sessions and that virtual meetings were more likely to reach a wider audience.

     

    By a unanimous vote

     

    It was RESOLVED: -

     

    1.1          That the CIL Expenditure Programme (October 2021) and accompanying technical assessment of the CIL Bids – M21-02, M21-05 M21-06 and M21-08 (forming Appendices, A and B) and which included decisions on this CIL Bid as follows be approved: -

              Local Infrastructure Fund

    CIL Bid, Location and Infrastructure Proposed

    Amount of CIL Bid and total cost of the Infrastructure

    Cabinet Decision

    M21-02

    RICKINGHALL

    Provision of All Wheel sports area

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £20,148.00

    Total costs

    £46,580.00 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-02 for £20,148.00 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

    M21-05

    DEBENHAM COMMUNITY CENTRE

    Provision of new natural lighting and improving the current ventilation and insulation

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £59,994.00

    Total costs of the CIL eligible parts of the project

    £79,992.00 including VAT

    Total costs of the wider project (including repair and maintenance which CIL cannot fund)

    £349,022.00

     

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-05 for £59,994.00 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

    M21-08

    FRAMSDEN

    Provision of Play equipment

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £18,789.20

    Total costs

    £59,482.00 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-08 for £18,789.20 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

     

    Ringfenced Infrastructure Fund (Elmswell)

    M21-06

    ELMSWELL CHAMBERLAYNE HALL

    Provision of Ventilation windows

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £19,593.81

    Total costs

    £26,125.90 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-06 for £19,593.81 from the Ringfenced Infrastructure Fund

     

    1.2   That this CIL Expenditure Programme which included the position in respect of approved CIL Bids from Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 (including Cabinet decisions in June 2021) - (Appendix A Section B) together with details of emerging infrastructure /CIL Bids (Appendix A Section C) be noted and endorsed.

    REASON FOR DECISION

    Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) monies have been collected since the implementation of CIL  ...  view the full minutes text for item 53.

    Recorded Vote
    TitleTypeRecorded Vote textResult
    To vote on recommendation 3.1 and 3.2 as detailed in report MCa/21/22 Resolution

    1.1          That the CIL Expenditure Programme (October 2021) and accompanying technical assessment of the CIL Bids – M21-02, M21-05 M21-06 and M21-08 (forming Appendices, A and B) and which included decisions on this CIL Bid as follows be approved: -

    Local Infrastructure Fund

    CIL Bid, Location and Infrastructure Proposed

    Amount of CIL Bid and total cost of the Infrastructure

    Cabinet Decision

    M21-02

    RICKINGHALL

    Provision of All Wheel sports area

     

     

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £20,148.00

    Total costs

    £46,580.00 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-02 for £20,148.00 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

    M21-05

    DEBENHAM COMMUNITY CENTRE

    Provision of new natural lighting and improving the current ventilation and insulation

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £59,994.00

    Total costs of the CIL eligible parts of the project

    £79,992.00 including VAT

    Total costs of the wider project (including repair and maintenance which CIL cannot fund)

    £349,022.00

     

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-05 for £59,994.00 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

    M21-08

    FRAMSDEN

    Provision of Play equipment

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £18,789.20

    Total costs

    £59,482.00 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-08 for £18,789.20 from the Local Infrastructure Fund

     

    Ringfenced Infrastructure Fund (Elmswell)

    M21-06

    ELMSWELL CHAMBERLAYNE HALL

    Provision of Ventilation windows

     

    Amount of CIL Bid

    £19,593.81

    Total costs

    £26,125.90 excluding VAT

    Recommendation to Cabinet to approve CIL Bid M21-06 for £19,593.81 from the Ringfenced Infrastructure Fund

     

    1.2   That this CIL Expenditure Programme which included the position in respect of approved CIL Bids from Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 (including Cabinet decisions in June 2021) - (Appendix A Section B) together with details of emerging infrastructure /CIL Bids (Appendix A Section C) be noted and endorsed.

     

    Carried
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  • 54.

    MCa/21/23 GATEWAY 14 LIMITED - GUARANTEE OF PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE WORKS UNTIL ADOPTION pdf icon PDF 184 KB

    Cabinet Member for Assets and Investments

    Decision:

    It was RESOLVED: -

     

    1.1          That the Council agree to act as guarantor in respect of agreements between Gateway 14 Ltd and statutory bodies to deliver the required public works enabling Gateway 14 to be developed.

    1.2          That authority be delegated to the S151 officer to approve and enter into any necessary agreements for the Council to act as guarantor for Gateway 14 in this respect.

     

    REASON FOR DECISION

    To support the delivery of Gateway 14 and the agreed business goals and objectives.

    Alternative Options Considered and Rejected:

    1.1                Option 1: - Gateway 14 Ltd pays a cash deposit to the statutory bodies that is equivalent to the value of the works being undertaken. This is likely to be in the order of £2,025,000 and would be retained by the statutory bodies until all of the works have been undertaken to an acceptable standard plus necessary time for snagging and warranty periods. This option is not viable as it is likely to use all of the Gateway 14 Ltd debt facility and leave minimal working capital within the business to operate thus delaying delivery or require the peak debt facility to be increased further which would increase borrowing costs without improving the return on investment.

    1.2                Option 2: - Gateway 14 Ltd provide a bond to the statutory undertakers using a third party (bondsman) to provide the necessary security. The bondsman would require a premium to be payable for offering this service, the cost of which is likely to be in the order of £300,000. This would be a development cost and not returned to Gateway 14 Ltd and therefore would reduce the profits/ dividends payable to the Council in the longer term. It has been increasingly difficult to secure bonds for construction works over the last 18 months and as such this option may not be deliverable in the market or may exceed the estimate cost provided.

    1.3                    Option 3: - The Council act as Guarantor for the public works, and as such are party to the necessary agreements such as the S278, 38 and 104 agreements with statutory undertakers, such as Highways and Anglian Water. The Council would be liable to complete any works not undertaken by the developer (Gateway 14 Ltd) in the event that the developer ceased to trade. Gateway 14 Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of MSDC (Suffolk Holdings) Ltd which in turn is wholly owned by the Council. The guarantee would terminate once works had been successfully completed and snagging warranty periods expire.

    1.4                    Option 3 provides the best value for money for the Council, mitigating the need to increase borrowings in the short term. Gateway 14 Ltd is a wholly owned company and activities and performance are monitored and reported regularly, thereby mitigating the risk of the Company’s failure in the future. In the event that the company did fail, and the guarantor was required to implement the necessary works, the land ownership would pass to the Council who in turn would  ...  view the full decision text for item 54.

    Minutes:

    54.1          The Cabinet Member for Assets and Investments, Councillor Gould introduced the report.

     

    54.2           Councillor Gould proposed the recommendations 3.1 and 3.2 in the report and this was seconded by Councillor Hadingham.

     

    54.3           The Cabinet Member for Assets and Investments and the Assistant Director for Assets and Investments responded to questions from other Members attending the meeting and confirmed that the Assistant Director was willing to respond to Members’ questions about the Gateway 14 project outside of formal meetings, and that arrangements for member briefings would take place.

     

    54.4           In response to Councillor Field’s question in relation to interested parties for the Gateway 14 site, the Assistant Director for Assts and Investments informed Cabinet that there had been increased interest after the announcements of the Felixstowe Freeport had been made.  She was confident in a strong demand for the site and a number of detailed discussions were taking place with interested companies.

     

    54.5           Councillor Burn enquired if the Assistant Director for Assets and Investments had a sense if there were more interests than the site could deliver, to which the Assistant Director responded that it was difficult to answer.  Whilst the development delivery timeline had been anticipated to be a ten-year period, she would consider the demand to be strong if the delivery timeline was reduced to a five-year period.

     

    By a unanimous vote

     

    It was RESOLVED: -

     

    1.1         That the Council agree to act as guarantor in respect of agreements between Gateway 14 Ltd and statutory bodies to deliver the required public works enabling Gateway 14 to be developed.

    1.2          That authority be delegated to the S151 Officer to approve and enter into any necessary agreements for the Council to act as guarantor for Gateway 14 in this respect.

    REASON FOR DECISION

    To support the delivery of Gateway 14 and the agreed business goals and objectives.

    Recorded Vote
    TitleTypeRecorded Vote textResult
    To vote on recommendation 3.1 and 3.2 as detailed in report Mca/21/23 Resolution

    1.1          That the Council agree to act as guarantor in respect of agreements between Gateway 14 Ltd and statutory bodies to deliver the required public works enabling Gateway 14 to be developed.

    1.1          That authority be delegated to the S151 Officer to approve and enter into any necessary agreements for the Council to act as guarantor for Gateway 14 in this respect.

     

    Carried
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  • 55.

    EXCLUSION OF THE PUBLIC (WHICH TERM INCLUDES THE PRESS)

    To consider whether, pursuant to Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, the public should be excluded from the meeting for the business specified below on the grounds that if the public were present during this item, it is likely that there would be the disclosure to them of exempt information as indicated against the item.  The author of the report proposed to be considered in Part 2 of the Agenda is satisfied that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

     

    Decision:

    As Members had completed their discussion of Item MCa/21/23 Gateway 14 Limited – Guarantee of Public Infrastructure Works until Adoption, the Chair refrained from going into closed session.

     

    Minutes:

    As Members had completed their discussion of Item MCa/21/23 Guarantee of Public Infrastructure Works until Adoption, the Chair refrained from going into closed session.

     

    Recorded Vote
    TitleTypeRecorded Vote textResult
    To vote to exclude the public (which term includes the press) Ad-Hoc Drawn
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  • 56.

    MCa/21/23 APPENDIX A - GATEWAY 14 LIMITED - GUARANTEE OF PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE WORKS UNTIL ADOPTION