Brighton council in Hove Town Hall and King's House sell-off?

12:43pm Thursday 4th October 2012 in News By Tim Ridgway, Local government reporter

SOLD?: King's House SOLD?: King's House

A council headquarters and most of a town hall could be sold in a multimillion pound deal to cut costs.

As it looks to combat Government cuts, Brighton and Hove City Council has revealed a radical proposal to relocate hundreds of its 8,000-strong workforce.

This could see the local authority sell two-thirds of Hove Town Hall in Norton Road as well as its Kings House seafront headquarters in Grand Avenue, Hove.

It comes five months after The Argus revealed the local authority was considering selling the latter, which is grade II listed and valued by the local authority at £13 million.

As well as an immediate cash boost of up to £8.7 million, the council believes it could save between £870,000 and £990,000 a year in running costs.

A council spokesman said: “We said months ago we were looking into rationalising our properties to help change the way we work and this is where we’re up to.

“We have a duty to minimise costs to taxpayers. If we can work out of fewer premises that’s what any business would do – and that’s what residents would expect us to do.”

The plan is one of two serious proposals to be discussed by the council’s influential policy and resources committee next Thursday.

The first, which would raise £18 million, would see all of Kings House and two-thirds of Hove Town Hall sold.

Staff would be relocated to office space in the remainder of Hove Town Hall, which would be upgraded, and other sites could be bought. This would cost between £9.3 million and £15.9 million, giving a potential profit of up to £8.7 million.

It is understood while Kings House could become residential, parts of Hove Town Hall would more likely become commercial units.

A second option involves the sale of Kings House and the conversion of the public spaces in Hove Town Hall into office space.

This would cost £12.2 million but would only lead to a potential profit of £1.1 million.

Councillors are expected to give permission for officers to look into likely demand for the buildings on the open market before any final decision is made.

If deemed viable the changes could be complete within three years.
Garry Peltzer Dunn, a Conservative councillor and former leader of Hove Borough Council, said: “My heart says I am totally against disposing of Hove Town Hall.

“But from what I understand this is just a proposal so we will see what comes about from exploring the options.”

When asked if it could lead to the city ditching the name of Hove from its full title, Coun Peltzer Dunn said: “Over my dead body.”

Comments(15)

rolivan says...
1:11pm Thu 4 Oct 12

So no mention of where they are going to place the 8,000 staff, just that they are looking at selling.
"This would cost between £9.3 million and £15.9 million, giving a potential profit of up to £8.7 million".
There is a lot of difference in these figures who pulled them out of the hat?

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saveHOVE says...
1:15pm Thu 4 Oct 12

The sheer sprawl of this city along the coastline and up to the Downs means that the Brighton Town Hall in Bartholomew Square, down in the Palace Pier area of Brighton, is not centrally located to serve the city.

They are already rebuilding a section of Hove Town Hall to accommodate more staff there and to hive off the big reception area and Great Hall for increased commercial use (bookings).

But the main building was designed as a public building, as a Town Hall, and it is hard to see how it could be converted without becoming a rather weird version of itself.

Bartholomew Square is a long way from Portslade too! Once again, proposals are about the heart of Brighton and relegation of Hove and Portslade to the role of cash cows for the bit that is prioritised: Brighton.

No wonder we have illegal levels of air pollution! The city is designed to pull all activity into a vortex that spills everyone out into North Street, the Lanes or the seafront between the piers.

They should big up the Hove Town Hall role to balance things out. But by all means sell Kings House. For that matter, also sell that vile carpark opposite Hove Town Hall. Demolish it and put up an office annex there for council employees.

Time this became a city that uses all its parts in a more equally divided way.

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Maxwell's Ghost says...
1:34pm Thu 4 Oct 12

They should shove them all up on some of the remote estates and then the officers making transport decisions will get a taste of the cycle/bus to work experience.

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bug eye says...
1:36pm Thu 4 Oct 12

New offices should be built or found along one of the cycle lanes the Greens love and away from the city centre. we do not want 8000 workers travelling into the city centre unnecessarily. choices are out by the universities ( preston barracks ) by the new proposed cycle lanes,or the old shoreham road where the cycle lanes are, or london road. all places easily accessible by bus and bike for a council that is so anti car, they need to start with keeping their own house in order and let the rest of the city progress and develop in a way that the residents want. Hove is becoming a destination in itself and if the areas for proposed developments are developed beautifully and with quality iconic buildings will excell.

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HJarrs says...
2:04pm Thu 4 Oct 12

It seems a reasonable idea to look at the property portfolio. This story first surfaced in May when a Tory councillor suggested that it would raise tens of millions to redevelop the King Alfred Centre etc.

Much as I thought and commented at the time, selling Kings House and now parts of the Town Hall will not generate vast revenues.

The development needs to pass a number of tests;

1. When properly costed, will selling the proporties really realise a profit?
2. Will running costs really be reduced?
3. Will the move enhance council efficiency and accountability?
4. Will the development of the sites generate more jobs for the city?
5. Can this avoid concentrating staff in Brighton as against Hove?

Selling these proporties is a one off opportunity to generate savings, make the council work better and bring in new investment and should be properly worked out before rushing into it.

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Gary Manilow says...
2:06pm Thu 4 Oct 12

Maxwell's Ghost wrote:
They should shove them all up on some of the remote estates and then the officers making transport decisions will get a taste of the cycle/bus to work experience.
Get's my vote!

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saveHOVE says...
3:26pm Thu 4 Oct 12

Maybe Toads Hole Valley could accommodate the whole 8,000 of them.....

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Crystal Ball says...
3:29pm Thu 4 Oct 12

Will this offset the 'loan' of £14m for the iTower? I mean iSore.

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Hove Actually says...
6:13pm Thu 4 Oct 12

Great consolidate the services in an area that has restricted access and no parking if that really is the way forward then sell all three buildings and operate out of an industrial estate for a 10th of the cost. Or save more and outsource it to India

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ourcoalition says...
6:16pm Thu 4 Oct 12

Gary Manilow wrote:
Maxwell's Ghost wrote:
They should shove them all up on some of the remote estates and then the officers making transport decisions will get a taste of the cycle/bus to work experience.
Get's my vote!
They might, but all the others won't. That includes home carers, occupational therapists, social care staff, building enforcement, environmental health, and on and on.
If moving saves money, yes, but if not, no!

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Maxwell's Ghost says...
7:44pm Thu 4 Oct 12

bug eye...Hove becoming a destination which will excell.
Have you been sniffing glue or just the fumes which waft over Hove from Shoreham port?

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Fight_Back says...
8:13pm Thu 4 Oct 12

Many of the staff could work from home - private companies have done this for years.

Now lets get on and sell these buildings.

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Falmer Wizard says...
12:22am Fri 5 Oct 12

Spreading the staff out will not make the Council operate any better and i would have thought a lot of time is going to be spent travelling between offices.No doubt if Kings House was privately owned there would be a financial gain in selling it,but handled by our team very unli9kely

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saveHOVE says...
9:50am Fri 5 Oct 12

Falmer Wizard wrote:
Spreading the staff out will not make the Council operate any better and i would have thought a lot of time is going to be spent travelling between offices.No doubt if Kings House was privately owned there would be a financial gain in selling it,but handled by our team very unli9kely
You are making the case for putting all 8,000 into purpose-built accommodation within the Toad's Hole Vallery redevelopment, methinks....

Rent out the whole of Brighton Town Hall but for the Chamber (for meetings) or;

Rent out the whole of Hove town Hall but for the Chamber (for meetings).

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Joshiman says...
1:23pm Fri 5 Oct 12

All council workers could be moved to the old Coop and cycle into work .No more free car parking spaces.Do as we plebs do,enjoy and experience the Parking restrictions/extorti
onate costs,gridlocked centre and long traffic queues in and out of Brighton caused by single car lanes, as most of all the roads are now bus and cycle lanes.
Yes enough benefits for the totally overstaffed civil servant pen pushers working for the Council.

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