Agenda item

The Interim Director of Place to present a report which seeks approval to grant leases of public open space and buildings to various local community groups and organisations to facilitate community management and responsibility of those assets and provide savings to the council.

Resolved:  That approval be given to:

a)   Grant a lease of Mayfields North to The Mayfields Community Trust for 10 years subject to a break clause, as set out in paragraph 30 of the report.

b)   Grant a lease of Mayfields South to Friends of York Railway Pond and Reserve for 25 years subject to a break clause as set out in paragraph 30 of the report.

c)   Grant a lease of Land at Clifton Without to Clifton Without Parish Council for 99 years.

d)   Grant a lease of Rowntree Pavilion to Rowntree Park Sports Association for 25 years.

e)   Grant a lease of Rowntree Tennis Courts to Rowntree Park Tennis Club for 25 years.

f)     Grant a lease of land near Rufforth to Rufforth & Knapton Parish Council for 99 years.

g)   Allocate £80K from the Climate Change capital budget to reprovide the allotments at Rufforth.

h)   Offer a 5 year lease (with the option to extend for a further 5 years) of the catering, communal dining and community hall facilities at Marjorie Waite Court to a community operator following a procurement exercise to secure an operator for a community café and the community hall under a concession contract, with authority to be delegated to the Corporate Director of Economy & Place (in consultation with the Director of Governance or her delegated officers) the authority to take such measures as are necessary to procure, award and enter into the resulting contract.

i)     Grant a lease of Chapmans Pond, Moor Lane to Chapmans Pond Community Interest Company for 10 years.

j)     Offer to the Trustees of Poppleton Community Trust the principle of surrendering their existing lease and being granted a new 99 year lease of the Poppleton Centre.

k)   Agree in principle a 99 year lease of the upper floors of Rowntree Park Lodge to the Friends of Rowntree Park, with authority to make the final decision to grant that lease to be delegated to the Executive Member for Finance and Performance, subject to the agreement of a funded business case at an Executive Member Decision Session in the next 12 months, or at a date agreed by the Executive Member for Finance and Performance.

Reasons:   (i)      To support York communities to access external funding and grants, to develop the facilities in line with local community aspirations and secure their long term sustainable care providing savings to the Council if it were to otherwise operate and manage these facilities itself.

                   (ii)      To support the health and wellbeing of people in the local community by providing the use of council assets which can be actively managed and improved by the involvement of the local community.

The Interim Director of Place presented a report which sought approval to grant leases of public open space and buildings to various local community groups and organisations to facilitate community management and responsibility of those assets and provide savings to the council.

The assets in question were listed in paragraph 2 of the report and illustrated in the plans attached at Appendices 1-10.  Further details relating to the assets and proposed leases were set out in paragraphs 14-94. It was confirmed that all the assets would remain in council ownership, be managed by the local community and remain accessible to the public, with access increased in some cases.

Having noted the comments made under Public Participation on this item, it was

Resolved:  That approval be given to:

a)   Grant a lease of Mayfields North to The Mayfields Community Trust for 10 years subject to a break clause, as set out in paragraph 30 of the report.

b)   Grant a lease of Mayfields South to Friends of York Railway Pond and Reserve for 25 years subject to a break clause as set out in paragraph 30 of the report.

c)   Grant a lease of Land at Clifton Without to Clifton Without Parish Council for 99 years.

d)   Grant a lease of Rowntree Pavilion to Rowntree Park Sports Association for 25 years.

e)   Grant a lease of Rowntree Tennis Courts to Rowntree Park Tennis Club for 25 years.

f)     Grant a lease of land near Rufforth to Rufforth & Knapton Parish Council for 99 years.

g)   Allocate £80K from the Climate Change capital budget to reprovide the allotments at Rufforth.

h)   Offer a 5 year lease (with the option to extend for a further 5 years) of the catering, communal dining and community hall facilities at Marjorie Waite Court to a community operator following a procurement exercise to secure an operator for a community café and the community hall under a concession contract, with authority to be delegated to the Corporate Director of Economy & Place (in consultation with the Director of Governance or her delegated officers) the authority to take such measures as are necessary to procure, award and enter into the resulting contract.

i)     Grant a lease of Chapmans Pond, Moor Lane to Chapmans Pond Community Interest Company for 10 years.

j)     Offer to the Trustees of Poppleton Community Trust the principle of surrendering their existing lease and being granted a new 99 year lease of the Poppleton Centre.

k)   Agree in principle a 99 year lease of the upper floors of Rowntree Park Lodge to the Friends of Rowntree Park, with authority to make the final decision to grant that lease to be delegated to the Executive Member for Finance and Performance, subject to the agreement of a funded business case at an Executive Member Decision Session in the next 12 months, or at a date agreed by the Executive Member for Finance and Performance.

Reasons:   (i)      To support York communities to access external funding and grants, to develop the facilities in line with local community aspirations and secure their long term sustainable care providing savings to the Council if it were to otherwise operate and manage these facilities itself.

                   (ii)      To support the health and wellbeing of people in the local community by providing the use of council assets which can be actively managed and improved by the involvement of the local community.