Council criticised as it agrees to sell 14-acre plot of land in Nunthorpe for housing and care home
Councillors have approved the so-called ‘private treaty’ sale of land at Nunthorpe intended for approximately 160 new homes and a care home.
Middlesbrough Council had already agreed to dispose of the 14 acre plot of land, which previously formed part of a larger agricultural landholding at Nunthorpe Grange Farm and to begin marketing it following a decision last December. The location sits close to Poole roundabout, on the junction of Guisborough Road with Stokesley Road, and the site of a newly constructed medical centre.
It was allocated in a local plan in 2014 for the development of “high quality, mixed, medium to higher density housing”. A report for an executive sub-committee said the marketing process had been paused after the local authority was approached by two separate parties with proposals which would lead to a “significant capital receipt being wholly paid during the current financial year”.
The report said the agreed sale price with the care home provider had been “favourably benchmarked against comparable values from recent known site disposal transactions”. It also said it was 30% higher than a figure currently listed by the council on its asset register.
It said the offer was conditional upon the granting of a satisfactory planning consent, adding that the proposal would contribute towards a sufficient supply of high quality location options to prevent older residents moving outside of the town.
Referring to the housing, it said negotiations with the prospective buyer here had taken place over a three month period and the final price agreed represented a “significant increase on the initial offer presented by the buyer at the outset of the negotiation”. In this instance, the developer’s offer was not conditional upon securing full planning approval.
‘Christmas come early’
Councillor Morgan McClintock, a Liberal Democrat, who represents Nunthorpe ward and is also on the parish council, criticised a lack of dialogue with local representatives and what he said was the “urgency to make a quick sale”. He said the decision was being made before a required refresh of a masterplan previously adopted for the area and claimed “Christmas for the developers had come early”.
Cllr McClintock said: “The council is acting in haste and the decision should be deferred until there is a firm framework for the developers to work under and a refreshed masterplan." He said he had repeatedly “pleaded” for progress to be made with the masterplan over a period of 16 months, but had been ignored.
The report acknowledged that there was a need to refresh the masterplan and design guide for the site to “reflect the current position and ambitions” and this would be completed alongside work to bring the site forward for sale.
Cllr McClintock said: “Suddenly it has become a matter of great urgency to move towards a sale even without the updated framework masterplan. As soon as these two favoured developers sign a deal they will surely have very little motivation to comply with any later revisions to the current masterplan, which all parties have agreed needs to be updated.
“There will be similar problems in relation to section 106 compensation for the community, we can expect great resistance to any such proposals perhaps to ameliorate traffic problems or to improve community facilities. Christmas for these developers will come very early, it will come in October.”
Executive member for regeneration, Councillor Theo Furness said: “I would not say we have made a rash decision. The plan was always the sale of the land.”
Cllr Furness said it was a prime site in a prime location and it was “great for the council” that the local authority was getting the money upfront in the current financial year, which helped its financial position. He said: “The masterplan is still in place and it [the developments] will go to planning when section 106 money will be decided.”
The report said: “The development will make a significant contribution to the prescribed national housing targets for Middlesbrough. In addition, securing a significant capital receipt in the 2024/25 financial year [will] assist in achieving the required level of receipts to support the delivery of the main capital programme and the council’s transformation portfolio.”
It added: “An alternative proposal of putting the site on the market ‘sold as seen’ and requesting competitive unconditional offers has been considered, but the limited potential for increasing the receipt through a competitive process is balanced out by the timing of the receipt being delayed until 2025/26. It is not felt that a competitive process based on unconditional offers would increase the receipt by enough to justify that course of action.
“In addition to the capital receipt that will be generated by the disposal, the sale of the site will contribute towards the Medium-Term Financial Plan via the income achieved through growth in the council tax base once houses are constructed and occupied, as well as an annual business rates yield on the care home facility. It is anticipated that the generation of council tax will be brought forward approximately 18 months if the private treaty bid is accepted.”
The figures involved were not disclosed with some information deemed 'exempt' and subject to discussion in closed session.
Go here for the latest Teesside property news and updates