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Comments on the CDT open meeting,
13th August, on Community Right to Buy
Cultybraggan Army Camp:
An email to the Editor, www.land-care.org.uk
from
Ian Thomas
Culloch School House, Blairinroar, Comrie,
Perthshire
ian@landmanager.eu
Website: www.landmanager.eu
Filed 17 Aug 07
©www.land-care.org.uk
James
Just thought I would say that those were very
valid and well made points that you made at the meeting concerning
the undesirability of squandering goodwill, and resources from a
range of charitable/community organisations. Many of these charitable
organisations have to make difficult decisions in allocating their
resources, so the CDT fall back position of selling it all on, after
what would seem to be a half-hearted try isn't a commendable action.
I also don't think the directors have grasped. or even previously
considered, the point you made about selling under financial duress,
either in terms of personal or financial impact.
I was staggered by the lack of anything to show
for the consultancy funding, or anything remotely resembling leadership
from the CDT. Perhaps this will come after the token vote has approved
the sale.
The lack of a grant to buy the site is a clear
failure of the board, and you have to wonder if the whole project
has been designed to fail, necessitating a radical change in direction?
I don't believe that a grant would be that hard to come by, particularly
if the issue was handled with some imagination.
With the purchase loan to pay back, the high running
costs and the low return, it is absolutely clear that the present
vague set of proposals will fail financially within two or three
years.
You could pick holes in the limited details and
preposterously low running costs advanced by DTZ until the cows
come home, but there is a basic flaw in the whole approach.
If you take out a loan on the potential value
of the site for a full commercial development, then any lender (charitable
or otherwise) will be looking to secure that loan.
If you try and lease areas of the land to a large
number of small, low return, enterprises/individuals then these
parties will require security of tenure (10year leases etc) to make
the proposal of any interest to them, and to encourage them to make
a commitment to the site.
These two factors are unworkable when you put
them together. A site with a large number of tenants (as above)
is worth very little in a forced sale, and might conceivably fail
to cover even the loan on the sale price (let alone the accumulating
deficit). The negative publicity from clearing the right to buy
tenants off the property would be enough to put institutions off,
without any consideration of the legal technicalities.
A sale of say 1/3 of the site ASAP for mixed housing
might allow the clearance of all debts, and provide working capital.
This would give the CDT funds to allow the community style developments
mixed with commercial to remain viable. Hopefully this is what the
CDT will do as soon as they don't have to report back to their members,
but why haven't the consultants come up with this as a fully worked
up and costed option?
My feeling is that after the vote (which is a
joke in itself) next Monday, then the village will hear a lot less
from the CDT as it goes about it's business, whatever that may be.
I wish you all the best with your new neighbour.
There is the potential for a positive result for all parties, but
based on past CDT performance I'm not holding my breath!
Regards
Ian
Ian Thomas
DCP
Culloch School House
Blairinroar
Comrie
Perthshire
PH6 2JG
Phone: 01764 670001
Fax: 01764 679728
ian@landmanager.eu
Website: www.landmanager.eu |
