The Cabinet is requested to consider this urgent matter. The report will be circulated separately to this agenda.
In October 2018 Cabinet authorised Officers to seek conditional offers for a lease of the whole Look & Sea Centre building for café/restaurant/bar (A3) use. The site has been marketed and an offer has been received for A3 use on the ground floor only.
It is therefore proposed that Cabinet supports the Look & Sea Centre building being leased on the revised basis that the ground floor remains in A3 use and provide a Lessee flexibility to find appropriate commercial uses of the upper floors, subject to planning.
This report is being presented as a matter of urgency for decision by Cabinet because the offer made is the only realistic chance of securing a Lessee that will operate the café/restaurant during the 2019 Summer season. The Chairman of the Overview Select Committee, Councillor Dingemans, has been consulted on the proposals and has given his agreement.
As this is being dealt with as an urgent matter, the usual arrangements requiring this item to be published with five clear days’ notice and the call-in arrangements will not apply [See Part 3 – Responsibility for Functions, Rule 2.3 and Part 5 – Cabinet Meeting Procedure Rules, Rule 3.2 of the Constitution].
Decision:
The Cabinet
RESOLVED – That
(1) It be agreed that the Look & Sea Centre building can be leased on the revised basis that the ground floor remains in A3 use but providing the Lessee flexibility to find appropriate commercial uses of the upper floors, subject to planning and other approvals; and
(2) Other than the above, the original decisions, including Officer delegations within Cabinet Decision C/020/151018 made on 15 October 2018 to remain operative.
The Cabinet then confirmed its decision as per Decision Notice C/052/110419), a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of the Minutes.
Minutes:
The Chairman confirmed that there was an urgent item to consider and she invited the Cabinet Member for Technical Services, Councillor Haymes, to present this report. He stated that prior to closure, the Look & Sea Centre had been an important and popular destination in its own right. Following decisions made by Cabinet at its meeting held on 15 October 2018, a lease had been advertised for A3 (café/restaurant/bar) use for the whole of the building.
Councillor Haymes confirmed that the Council had received offers that included A3 use of the ground floor but these indicated that there was not a market for A3 use of the upper floors at the present time. It was therefore proposed that Cabinet be asked to agree to amend the delegations to Officers to negotiate heads of terms and enter into a lease on the revised basis that the ground floor remained in A3 use providing a Lessee flexibility to find appropriate commercial uses of the upper floors, subject to planning and other approvals.
Councillor Haymes announced that this report was being presented as a matter of urgency as it was only a decision by Cabinet today that would allow flexibility relating to the upper floors that would enable any realistic chance of securing a Lessee that would operate the café/restaurant at the Look & Sea during the 2019 summer season. Councillor Haymes stated that this was something that he would like to see happen.
As this item was being dealt with as an urgent matter, the usual arrangements requiring it to be published with five clear days’ notice and the call-in arrangements did not apply as set out in the Council’s Constitution at Part 3 – Responsibility for Functions, Rule 2.3 and Part 5 – Cabinet Meeting Procedure Rules, Rule 3.2. The Chairman of the Overview Select Committee, Councillor Dingemans, had been consulted on the proposals and had given his agreement.
The Group Head of Technical Services was then invited to provide his input to the report. He confirmed that it was good news in that the site had been marketed by the Council’s appointed Agents since February 2019 and that offers had been submitted for A3 use of the ground floor, with one of the offers including access for customers to the viewing platforms. The delegations approved by Cabinet back in October 2018, envisaged an A3 use of the whole building. The bids received fell outside of this requirement. It was therefore necessary to seek Cabinet’s approval that the lease arrangements for the Look & Sea could be revised on the basis that the ground floor remained in A3 use allowing a Lessee flexibility to find appropriate commercial uses for the upper floors, subject to planning and other approvals. Without Cabinet’s approval to adjust its decision made in October 2018, there would be no realistic chance of securing a Lessee that could operate the café/restaurant for the 2019 summer season. Obtaining Cabinet approval would allow negotiations to commence to obtain the best consideration for the Council.
In considering the report, the Chairman asked the Group Head of Technical Services if he could provide a potential date when the Look & Sea Centre might re-open? It was confirmed that it was hoped that the café/restaurant would be operational by early summer.
Other comments made were that it was clear from the market testing undertaken that there was no interest in leasing the whole of the building. Looking at the options available, further marketing could take place but with the real threat that the building would remain empty for a long period of time. By agreeing this small adjustment to the previous decision to the building, it would hopefully mean that the café/restaurant could be occupied for the summer, re-establishing a much needed tourist attraction for Littlehampton.
Questions were asked as to whether any Lessee would be allowed to lease the remaining floors of the building. It was important for the Council to still obtain income in this respect. The Group Head of Technical Services responded stating that it was proposed that the lease would be for the whole building with the Lessee to then find uses for the upper floors.
The Cabinet
RESOLVED – That
(1) It be agreed that the Look & Sea Centre building can be leased on the revised basis that the ground floor remains in A3 use but providing the Lessee flexibility to find appropriate commercial uses of the upper floors, subject to planning and other approvals; and
(2) Other than the above, the original decisions, including Officer delegations within Cabinet Decision C/020/151018 made on 15 October 2018 to remain operative.
The Cabinet then confirmed its decision as per Decision Notice C/052/110419), a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of the Minutes.
Supporting documents: