Agenda item

To receive the report of the Regeneration and Property Director, Alexandra Park and Palace.

Kerri Farnsworth – Director  of Regeneration and Property – introduced the report as set out.

NOTED:

·               The Park had retained Green Flag status for the 6^th year running, and had been awarded a silver-gilt in the Large Park category for London in Bloom.

·               The Section 106 project to improve the Park at the Campsbourne end was underway.

Little Dinosaurs

·               The application had been withdrawn.

·               David Frith raised concerns at the way the application had been dealt with.  His view was that the APP Board should give clear guidance on what would and wouldn’t be acceptable in advance of  all planning applications which affected the Park.

·               The Chair also made a plea that all future applications should  follow guidance from the Board after inputs from the SAC/CC.

·               Duncan Wilson responded that it would not be wise to end up with a situation where unreasonable delays would be caused to applications due to consultation with the SAC/CC/APPB.  It would be more reasonable to advise applicants that they need to provide as much detail and information to the SAC/CC/APPB at the early stages so that advice can be provided to the Planning Authority without undue delay.

Capital Gardens

·               Duncan Wilson introduced Tim McLeod-Rice (Capital Gardens) and Alun Jones (Dow Jones Architects Ltd).

·               Alun Jones outlined the application.  Capital Gardens were seeking to remove two existing stores within the site and replace with one timber-clad building, to be used as office accommodation for the garden centre.  The existing boundary wall would remain intact, and the building would not be visible from the outside.  The pre-planning advice from the Planning Authority was positive, but they had also advised that the applicant should seek advice from Alexandra Palace.

·               The building would only be used by Capital Gardens, and the old office would be used as storage space.

·               Members requested that the condition of the meadow at the entrance be improved – Tim McLeod-Rice agreed to report this back to his Managing Director.

·               Members commented that the open meadow by the entrance, which had been a condition of the original lease should be improved – Tim McLeod-Rice agreed to report this back to his Managing Director.

Fabric Repair project

·               The fabric repair project had now been completed.

·               Interim repairs were in progress on the Theatre and the North Wall.

·               Purcell had been appointed as Surveyor to the Fabric – the first task would be to develop a fabric maintenance plan to cover the next ten years. 

HLF project

·               Good progress had been made on the project.  Discussions were taking place with a number of potential partner organisations, including the BBC.

·               The Palace were in the process of recruiting a Fundraising Manager, who would have a key focus on identifying funding opportunities from trusts, foundations and major bodies.  The response to the advertisement had been limited.

·               There would be a special Alexandra Park and Palace Board meeting in November to confirm recommendation for the appointment of a design team.

·               The Chairman commented that the procurement programme for staff and consultants shown in the report was understandably large and ambitious – he asked for clarity in this so that the Board and Committees could comment as appropriate.

·               With regard to the update on the Regeneration Working Group, the Chairman welcomed the report with its revised governance structure – he noted the intention to establish a new ‘Project Board’ and asked that the work of this new board should be as open and transparent as possible.

Kerri Farnsworth and Duncan Wilson responded to questions from the Committee:

·               The Council’s tender process had been followed in order to appoint Purcell.  8 companies had been invited to tender, and the tender submissions were evaluated by the Trust Members and Haringey Council staff.

·               Initial investigations had been carried out on the auditorium ceiling – conditions were as to be expected – structural repairs would be completed by the end of November 2013.

·               The main problem identified in the North Wall was cement render damage.

·               The building was not watertight everywhere – although the fabric maintenance plan would pick all of these issues up.

·               Match funding – the Chief Executive and Leader of the Council understood the significance of the match funding for the proposals at the Palace, and HLF were looking to hear that the money would be guaranteed.

·               After the interim works to the theatre, it was expected that the public would be able to access it under accompanied visits.  However, until the ceiling was stable, it could not be used.

The Chair asked the Committee for their views and it was:

RESOLVED

i)          to note the report; and

ii)         to endorse the content of the proposals made by Capital Gardens.