The Council is asked to note any statements made by the Leader of the Council.
Councillors may then ask questions of the Leader on his statements.
Minutes:
Updates on: (1) the Levelling Up Fund bid for Clacton-on-Sea; and (2) Freeport East
“Members will already be already aware of the hugely exciting announcement made by Government last week that we – on behalf of Clacton – were successful in a bid for almost £20 million from the Levelling Up Fund.
Our bid focused on plans for redevelopment of Carnarvon Terrace – currently made up of Carnarvon House and the Clacton library building, two sites which are ageing, of their time, and certainly do not inspire a warm welcome to the town for visitors either arriving at the nearby railway station, or following the A133 to the seafront.
The vision is to replace these buildings with new, modern facilities, visually welcoming as a gateway to Clacton. On the site would be a new library and adult skills space, some commercial space, housing, and of course the opportunity to re-design the public realm and part of the High Street car park too.
Now we have secured this funding – and lest we miss the scale of this award, let’s not forget this grant is more than our annual general fund revenue budget as a Council – more detailed plans can be worked up. Some work is already underway, with the demolition of Carnarvon House which has been supported by a separate funding award.
I was reflecting just the other day at how wide-ranging a project this will be for us. It will touch upon every portfolio in our Cabinet: proper and better use of our assets; housing; a major planning application; business opportunity and town centre gateway; quality public space; a more attractive appeal for tourists visiting our resort; and of course partnerships will be crucial as we work closely with Essex County Council, the University of Essex and others to deliver this scheme.
Of course, the announcement last week was not a total success, with our separate bid made for £6 million for projects in Harwich and Dovercourt not being successful in this round. When the Clacton bid did not succeed in round one we received some really useful feedback from the Department for Housing, Levelling Up and Communities to refine our proposals the next time which we did, so I hope we will get the same opportunity for Harwich.
Mr Chairman, on the subject of Harwich, I have the pleasure of updating Members on more good news on Freeport East which has occurred since we last convened. Earlier this month the Government – again the Department for Housing, Levelling Up and Communities – approved the final business case for Freeport East. This, alongside allocation of initial customs and tax sites, means the Freeport is now in the delivery phase. Crucially this unlocks £25 million of Government funding for infrastructure enhancement.
I attended the launch of Freeport East in Parliament, and one of the key speakers from the University of Essex made the point that Freeport East is the largest project they have been involved in since the founding of the university in the early 1960s. I concur with that opinion. The project is in my view the most significant in the whole eastern region for a generation if not a lifetime. As the Freeport East vision is realised this huge opportunity will realise benefits not only for Harwich but the whole District – centred on jobs, skills and regeneration.
Both of these projects will take time to be fully realised. We are not at the beginning of the end, but at the end of the beginning to paraphrase our Chief Executive who was in turn paraphrasing a certain someone else. Much hard work from our dedicated officers and partners has gone into taking us to this point. And much more will be needed to bring those projects to fruition. I expect that all Members here – and future Members, whoever sits in this chamber after the May elections – can see the opportunity and benefits for Tendring, and will support these two major investments in our District.”
The Leader of the Council then responded to questions put to him by Councillors I J Henderson and Steady.