The purchase of The Mall and House of Fraser buildings in Camberley in 2016 by Surrey Heath was in support of the Council’s priorities to regenerate Camberley town centre, and not as a rental income investment.
The Council purchased the shopping centre by directly approaching the owner, thereby losing any competitive market tension. However, this gave the Council the best chance of securing the sites in support of their long term strategy to undertake a wholesale redevelopment of the town centre to make a better place to shop, visit and live for residents.
The purchases and long-term strategy of the Council have been transparent from the start, though perhaps better engagement could have been achieved, as some within the Borough have made inaccurate assumptions from misinformation. This in part led to an enquiry being held that has cost over £100,000 and hundreds of man-hours to reveal little more than what was already known.
This has been well outlined by both Cllr Trefor Hogg and Borough Council Leader Cllr Alan McClafferty - a full report on these purchases is due to be released this summer by the Council.
Commenting, Cllr Alan McClafferty said:
"A lot of time, money and effort to learn what we already knew.
"At the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee this evening, the task and finish group demanded and led by the Liberal Democrats to investigate the purchase of The Mall and House of Fraser buildings in Camberley in 2016, was given an update stating the main findings of the report.
"With a budget of £110,000 and after hundreds of manhours, interviewing all the professional parties involved and an independent investigator report into the purchases, it was no surprise to hear that:
- The prices paid by the Council were at the top end of the valuations but did not overpay, as per false claims made prior to the investigation.
- The purchases were in support of the Council’s priorities to regenerate Camberley Town Centre and not as a rental income investment.
- The Council purchased the shopping centre by directly approaching the owner, thereby losing any competitive market tension. However, this gave the Council the best chance of securing the sites in support of their long-term strategy.
- The purchase of the properties allowed the Council to undertake a wholesale redevelopment of the town centre that it would be impossible to do otherwise and would not have been done by the previous owners.
"The properties will require significant future investment to increase their market value over the long term. The properties have lost significant value due to the reduction in traditional bricks and mortar retail across the country and COVID. However, this loss would only materialise upon the sale of the properties and the Council’s declared strategy is to own the properties for at least 50 years.
"The task and finish group was scheduled to report it’s findings in September 2020, but now plans to do so in July 2021.
"Perhaps now we will stop hearing unfounded claims and we can look forward rather than backwards."
Cllr Trefor Hogg added:
"£110,000 pounds of our money and untold amounts of working time later - it is clear the allegations made are baseless as those making them knew at the outset.
"That is money and working time that could have been much better used for the Public Benefit.
"As one of the Camberley Society Trustees I was there a year before the Mall was purchased at a public meeting where SHBC publicly stated they would like to buy the Mall to end a 25 year logjam on rejuvenating the Town Centre.
"A year later I was the one member of the public at the Budget setting meeting of the Council when the risks involved in the purchase and the benefits to the Council's Budget were clearly explained and debated.
"There were no secrets to be discovered, everything material was already in public view."
