Car park sale bid put on hold (From Thurrock Gazette)

Car park sale bid put on hold

7:30am Tuesday 23rd October 2012 in News

PLANS to build a multi-storey car park, supermarket and flats on the site of King Street car park in Stanford-Le-Hope have been put on hold after it emerged the land will not be sold off – yet.

At a planning committee meeting in July, developer Capital Land Partner LLP received planning permission to build a new car park, retail unit and 22 flats on the site, but that developer is yet to buy the land.

A report on the plan’s progress, presented by leader John Kent to Thurrock Council’s cabinet last week, deferred the sale of the site until “a valuation to offer the best value to the council” is agreed.

Cllr Kent said: “I know through dialogue with the Conservative group that they are uneasy about the sale going through until a more specific valuation has been agreed.

“I would therefore like to defer this aspect until such a time that the valuation has been agreed.”

Tory councillor for Stanford-le-Hope West, Shane Hebb, said: “I am very pleased the King Street car park sell-off has been temporarily stopped. “Since planning permission wasapproved in the summer, it is even clearer from local reaction that there are genuine questions about the integrity of this development.

“I am committed that Stanford should have the right type of local regeneration. All we can do now is to continue to lobby the Labour administration to think of what is best for Stanford residents, all the while protecting free car parking in the town centre.”

In July 2012, a cross-party working group was set-up to look at a number of issues related to “disposing” of council assets.

The group also decided a former primary school in West Tilbury should be sold for the “best consideration” through a marketing process, which could include outline planning permission to turn it into a residential development.