Empty county council and police buildings in Stone will be reviewed as part of a county-wide plan to bring them back into use.
Buildings in Stone that will be looked at include Stone Youth Centre, the old police station in Radford Street and the old fire station building at the end of Newcastle Street, near Crown Wharf. The county council says empty and uder-utilised buildings and parcels of land across Staffordshire “could potentially be used to create a new health centre, flexi care accommodation to allow more people to live independently, new homes, and business and enterprise developments”.
The newly established Penda Property Partnership – the county council, Police and Crime Commissioner and property developer Kier – will review the property portfolio across the county to “unlock value, optimise use and reinvest rewards in Staffordshire”.
As part of the agreement, the partnership will review current use of land and buildings before identifying which sites have the potential to be developed further. Only at this stage will a business case be considered and both the council and the Police and Crime Commissioner will have the final say on their projects.
Staffordshire County Council currently owns around 400 buildings and offices while the Office of the PCC owns around 50. The county council’s Cabinet agreed this week that projects with a value of more than £10 million will be referred to Cabinet as part of the decision process.
Ian Parry, Stone Rural county councillor and cabinet member for strategy, finance and corporate issues, said: “This new Penda Property Partnership will help us tap into the value of poorly used public buildings to help support the council deliver wider benefits for Staffordshire residents. It is often the simplest ideas which are the most effective and instead of being mothballed or run half empty this new agreement will help see sites revitalised and marketed to support new jobs, homes, healthcare and wider investment. Although the review will be looking at the whole portfolio, only those which are underpinned by a compelling business case will be taken forward.”
Stone police station closed in January this year, with a new police post in the town council offices opening its doors. More HERE
Stone Youth Centre closed at the end of 2014 following county council cuts. Stone Town Council recently withdrew from negotiations to take it on – more HERE – and the building’s future will now be considered as part of the Penda Property Partnership review
2 comments
Peter Calvert
If SCC dispose of the old police station site will that affect the Northesk Street car park which I believe is also SCC owned ?
Jamie Summerfield
Good question, Peter. It’s managed by the town council but not sure if they own it. We’ll look into it