Following the deferral of consideration of the motion at Council on 13th December 2017, Councillor B S Chapman to move –
“The Falcon Hotel on St Neots Market Square has been closed for the past decade. The building occupies a central position at the heart of St Neots and its current appearance and lack of use is damaging to the local St Neots economy.
The appearance of the Falcon Hotel is unsightly and damaging to St
Neots tourism and attractiveness of the
Market Square to local residents and visitors. It is damaging to
the local retail economy and impacts profitability and
sustainability of local shops, pubs and restaurants. The Falcon
Hotel is a prominent feature of the St Neots Riverside as well as the town's Market Square
but currently has a significant negative impact on both
vistas.
The Falcon Hotel offers Huntingdonshire District Council an
opportunity to play a part in reversing the decline of the St
Neots economy.
Last summer an online petition calling for HDC to Compulsorily Purchase the Falcon Hotel was supported by over 600 signatures in a period of one week.
It is therefore proposed that Huntingdonshire District Council in its capacities both as Local Planning Authority and the Principal Authority responsible for St Neots Economic Development commit to serving a Compulsory Purchase Order on the owner of Falcon Hotel, St Neots.”
Minutes:
(See Minute No. 21 for Members’ interests).
Further to Minute No. 44 (b) of the meeting of the Council held on 13th December 2017, Councillor B S Chapman moved and it was duly seconded by Councillor D A Giles that –
“The Falcon Hotel on St Neots Market Square has been closed for the past decade. The building occupies a central position at the heart of St Neots and its current appearance and lack of use is damaging to the local St Neots economy.
The appearance of the Falcon Hotel is unsightly and damaging to St
Neots tourism and attractiveness of the
Market Square to local residents and visitors. It is damaging to
the local retail economy and impacts profitability and
sustainability of local shops, pubs and restaurants. The Falcon
Hotel is a prominent feature of the St Neots Riverside as well as the town's Market Square
but currently has a significant negative impact on both
vistas.
The Falcon Hotel offers Huntingdonshire District Council an
opportunity to play a part in reversing the decline of the St
Neots economy.
Last summer an online petition calling for HDC to Compulsorily Purchase the Falcon Hotel was supported by over 600 signatures in a period of one week.
It is therefore proposed that Huntingdonshire District Council in its capacities both as Local Planning Authority and the Principal Authority responsible for St Neots Economic Development commit to serving a Compulsory Purchase Order on the owner of Falcon Hotel, St Neots.”
An amendment to the motion was moved by Councillor R Fuller and duly seconded by Councillor G J Bull that –
“The Falcon Hotel on St Neots Market Square has been closed for the past decade. The building occupies a central position at the heart of St Neots and the District Council recognises that The Falcon is a visually important element of St Neots Market Square and its future use can make a collective positive contribution to the vibrancy and economic success of the town centre.
Previous action by the District Council, through a Section 215 Notice, to improve the external appearance of this Listed building has been successful in preventing further decline, but a viable future use for the building must be found. The District Council’s strong stance on resisting inappropriate development of the site through the statutory planning process has been consistently upheld by independent Inspectors at Appeal and the planning status and potential of the site is thereby increasingly clear.
That importance is reflected in the ongoing work of the newly formed St Neots Master Plan for Growth Steering Group, on which the District and Town Councils, along with others, are represented.
The District Council supports work to find an appropriate use for the building and will continue to facilitate discussions to bring this forward, by whatever mechanisms are appropriate. This includes the exploration of a Compulsory Purchase Order option if the use of the building cannot be resolved voluntarily with the site owner or via an open market solution.
In progressing those discussions, it is important to recognise that any use of the building must be operationally and financially sustainable in its own right and should not be on the premise of any ongoing public subsidy.
It is therefore proposed that Members acknowledge and support the work that is already being undertaken to bring the building back into active use for a purpose that St Neots needs and that will give it a viable future.”
Councillor Fuller explained that it would not be usual practice for the District Council to serve a Compulsory Purchase Order on the building and referred to the near completion of phase one of the St Neots Master Plan, where at phase two there would be work undertaken to look for business cases to explore.
Councillor Bull informed Members that he and Councillor Chapman had discussed the demise of the building and impact that it had on the town, but concurred with Councillor Fuller’s views that the Council would be unable to commit to a Compulsory Purchase Order.
The following amendment to the Motion was moved by Councillor N Johnson and duly seconded by Councillor C J Maslen –
“that the words “if no meaningful progress is made within three months the Council be seen to proceed to seeking a Compulsory Purchase Order” be inserted after the sentence ending “open market solution”
On being put to the vote the amendment was declared to be LOST.
In response, Councillor Chapman explained that he had supported what Officers had achieved at the District Council with the building and had been continuing to work with them to resolve the problem. He further informed Members of the impact that building and its location was having on the local economy and suggested that the amendment as proposed by Councillor Fuller was contrary to the Planning Policy of the Council, whereas his motion was in line with the regeneration group of the Combined Authority. It had been an ongoing issue for over 12 years, with numerous attempts to set up meetings with the owner and Councillor Chapman suggested that the only planning application that had been submitted during this time had been as a result the petition calling for a Compulsory Purchase Order of the building.
Councillor D A Giles explained that there had been numerous issues with various buildings located in St Neots town centre over the years, including the former Paines Brewery and the Tomson and Lendrum building, but had been resolved through the intervention of the District Council and it was hoped that a similar approach could be applied to The Falcon Hotel. Although indicating his reluctant support for the proposed amendment, Councillor Giles referred to the potential support that could assist the regeneration project through Combined Authority funding, whereby the Managing Director explained that a bid could be submitted for re-use of the building but to be sustainable in its own right and not reliant on an ongoing subsidy.
In referring to his passion for the Falcon Hotel, Councillor Chapman drew Members attention to the consultation that was undertaken on the Neighbourhood Plan for St Neots and the Falcon Hotel had been highlighted as a high priority and item of concern for the town. He suggested that the proposed amendment to the motion had weakened the approach to resolving the problems with the building.
In indicating the cross-party support for Councillor Chapman’s proposal, Councillor Johnson questioned the difficulty for succeeding with this project without a time limit imposed. In response, Councillor J A Gray explained the difficulty with imposing a Compulsory Purchase Order on the building and in order for the Compulsory Purchase Order to legally succeed the Council would require an end use for the building. In line with Policy P3 of the St Neots Neighbourhood Plan 2014-2029, Councillor Gray explained that support would be provided to regenerate the Falcon Hotel, not necessarily through committing the Council to acquire the building and the success would be measured by persuading the owner to take action, this could be by way of a consortium of local people to acquire the building.
Councillor K I Prentice shared the passion for taking action but explained that any action needed to be in the best interests of the Council and for St Neots. Councillor Maslen also referred to the importance of the building and suggested taking forward development of the building to bring back into use as a hotel.
In sympathy with Councillor Chapman and the residents of St Neots, Councillor D B Dew explained that it was not possible make policies without thorough planning and suggested that the St Neots Master Plan Steering Group was a mechanism to be used to research the options thoroughly before taking any unnecessary action such as a Compulsory Purchase Order, that was not likely to succeed.
In referring to the lack of a timeline the following amendment to the Motion was moved by Councillor Giles and duly seconded by Councillor Maslen –
“that the words “after 12 months” be inserted after the words “Compulsory Purchase Order option” in the fourth paragraph.
On being put to the vote the amendment was declared to be LOST.
In accordance with paragraph 11.12 of the Council Procedure Rules, Councillor Fuller proposed a closure motion that was duly seconded by Councillor Dew and upon being put to the vote it was CARRIED. He further requested a recorded vote on the motion and in accordance with paragraph 14.4 of the Council Procedure Rules the following Members voted for, against or abstained from the Motion.
For the Motion – Bellamy, Besley, Bull, Butler, Bywater, Clarke, Corney, Criswell, Davies, Dew, Dickinson, Fuller, Gaskin, Gray, Gulson, Humphrey, Jordan, Keane, Masson, McGuire, Morris, Neish, Palmer, Prentice, Tavener, Tuplin, Tysoe, Underwood, West and White.
Against the Motion – Banks, Burton, Chapman, Cooper-Marsh, Sanderson and Shrapnel.
Abstentions – Diaz, D A Giles, Johnson, Kadewere, Maslen and Wakeford.
Actions:10 Minutes.