Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies received at the meeting.

To receive any declarations of interest. Members are advised to consider the advice contained within the Declaration of Interest advice attached to this Agenda. If a Member declares an interest, they should complete the Declaration of Interest Form

To approve the summary of recommendations and decisions of the Cabinet meeting held on 29 April 2021, copy attached.

Councillor Ashbee proposed, Councillor Bob Bayford seconded and Cabinet agreed to take the minutes of the meeting held on 29 April 2021 as read.

Cabinet considered disposal proposals for the council property at 18 Albert Street, which is a grade 2 listed building. It was previously occupied as a shared ownership property, with the council owning a share. The previous occupants, who owned the remaining share, were responsible, under the terms of the sharing arrangement for the maintenance of the building. The property was currently in very poor condition, as detailed in the Cabinet report, with high estimated costs of refurbishment. 

The property was also poorly laid out, with accommodation over 3 floors, connected by a narrow and winding staircase. The kitchen and bathroom were extremely small and there was now outside amenity space. For these reasons it was not considered suitable for retention as part of the council’s rented housing stock. Members were reminded that there was a specific requirement on the council to ensure that any disposals of vacant dwellings are at a market value. It was therefore recommended that the council tested the market by disposing of the property at auction.

Councillor Austin spoke under council Procedure Rule 20.1.

Councillor Jill Bayford proposed, Councillor Pugh seconded and Cabinet agreed the following, that:

1. The Council owned property; 18 Albert Street is disposed of through auction;

2. The proceeds of sale are reinvested in the council’s HRA capital programme.

Members considered the nominations presented to the meeting by the Leader of Council. The meeting was advised that the Margate Town Partnership was no longer in existence and had been replaced by the Margate Town Team which did not require member representation. The Margate Town Partnership was therefore taken off the list of Executive Appointed Outside Bodies for 2021/22.

Councillor Ashbee proposed, Councillor Kup seconded and Cabinet agreed the following nominations for the listed Executive Appointed Outside Bodies for the municipal year 2021/22.

Report to follow.

Cabinet considered the updates regarding the current state of the coastal lifts in Broadstairs and Ramsgate. It was agreed that maintenance work on the lift at Viking Bay would be undertaken and be completed by the beginning of July 2021 at a cost of £17k. The costs would be paid from the Brexit Fund allocated by government. There had been a delay to start the repair works as a result of the parts being made.

There was now a new emergency response and attendance procure for the lifts to ensure that any problems would be fixed as soon as possible. The Viking Bay lift was over twenty years old and would require about £45k to bring it up to modern day standards. This would require a replacement of all the major components to give the lift more longevity. However no further budget had been allocated for these works.

The Ramsgate lifts had been affected by theft of lead from the roof and £48k had already been spent on repairs. It was anticipated that a further £20k would be needed to get the lift operational. However the additional repair works would be subject to structural surveys that had just been completed. Therefore until there was a clear understanding of the condition and work required, no further budget had been allocated for the repairs.

The following Members spoke under Council Procedure 20.1:

Councillor Bailey;

Councillor Garner.

Councillor Bob Bayford proposed, Councillor Pugh seconded and Cabinet agreed to note the report.

Report to follow.

Cabinet appreciated the opportunity made available to Thanet District by central government to be a Priority One area for the Levelling Up Fund. This was the second opportunity that Thanet has had to bid for the funding for MargateDigital. The proposals under this bid would provide a cutting edge, industry relevant training space, which aims to influence creative thinking and technology, inspire people and provide industry ready candidates. The centre aimed to deliver inward investment, raise aspirations, provide opportunities for retraining and support SME’s in the sector. EKC Group proposed to deliver more than 200 learners in the first year who would be primarily aged between 16 and 19 years.

This proposal was aligned with the Margate Town Deal which that was presented at the extraordinary cabinet meeting that took place on 8 July 2021, and will support the regeneration and repurposing of Margate High Street. Members were supportive of the bid and it had the full backing of the local Member of Parliament. Thanet had been lucky enough to have more than one opportunity to bid to this fund, with each of the two Parliamentary constituency areas in the district represented in the submitted bids.

Councillor Everitt spoke under Council Procedure Rule 20.1

Councillor Pugh proposed, Councillor Kup seconded and Cabinet agreed the following:

1.  To approve submission of a Levelling Up Bid to the 18 June, 2021 deadline;

2.  To delegate authority to Chief Executive and the Leader, for final sign-off of the Levelling up Bid;

3.  That the Council will not make a financial contribution in any form within the 10% financial contribution encouraged in the prospectus, and this will be contributed by EKC Group.