Agenda item

Report of the Corporate Director of Finance and Resources (S151 Officer). To be presented by the Cabinet Member for Placemaking & Local Economy.

Declarations of interest for this item:

None

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet:

1.    Noted that the Compulsory Purchase Order granted in March 2020 would expire through effluxion of time on 12^th December 2025.

2.    Agreed that the Director of Capital Projects and Property in consultation with the Corporate Director of Finance and Resources and the Director of Placemaking and Community Development prepares the Wards Corner Property Strategy, having regard to LBH’s strategic ambitions for the South Tottenham area.

3.    Agreed that the Director of Capital Projects and Property in consultation with the Corporate Director of Finance and Resources prepares the Wards Corner Asset Management Plan

4.    Agreed to co-operate with Places for London in respect of its future long term plans for its holdings within the wider site.

Reasons for Decision

In July 2022 Cabinet resolved to acquire 36 Wards Corner property interests comprising a mix of freehold and leasehold land, commercial property and residential assets from Grainger PLC (“Grainger”) under an option agreement contained within the development agreement between LBH and Grainger. Grainger had notified LBH that its plans for the comprehensive development of the whole Wards Corner site were unviable and this agreement allowed Grainger to terminate its involvement on grounds of lack of development viability. LBH undertook its own analysis which confirmed this lack of viability.

LBH also undertook analysis on alternative schemes that would comprise only the property interests under its control and those that could be acquired under the London Borough of Haringey (Wards Corner Regeneration Project) Compulsory Purchase Order 2016 (CPO) (so, excluding the properties owned by Places for London (“Places”)). The modelling of both the more comprehensive and more conservative alternative variants generated significant losses from development activity.

The Wards Corner scheme was removed from LBH’s Capital Programme in March 2024. At that time it was deemed that a comprehensive redevelopment was not financially viable and it should be removed until more detailed plans come forward that might prove viable.

LBH undertook revised development viability studies via its specialist advisor BNP Paribas (“BNP”) in early 2025. This updated analysis pointed to potentially greater losses upon redevelopment than at the time of the LBH acquisition of the Grainger interests.

The Wards Corner Asset Management Plan will enable estate management activity to be focussed upon maximising long term income from the LBH commercial assets on West Green Road and Seven Sisters Road, whilst also encouraging, through tenant incentives where necessary, work to be carried out to assist in improving the appearance of this important entrance point to the borough and removing some of the blight that impacts on Seven Sisters as an important town centre and transport hub.

In respect of the Suffield Road and High Road residential properties, this Asset Management Plan will also enable LBH to incorporate these assets within its Housing Delivery Programme, to refurbish to provide temporary accommodation or to generate capital receipts from disposal (or a mixture of each of these outcomes).

LBH is working closely with Places in respect of both parties’ desired outcome for the future of the Wards Corner site. The recently constructed and opened Seven Sisters Market is an example of such co-operation. This market facility will continue to operate under its current lease while long term plans are being formulated in respect of the buildings owned by Places.

Alternative Options Considered

The alternative option is to continue to lease the commercial properties on a short term basis and to keep the currently vacant residential units unoccupied. This strategy, pending a future comprehensive redevelopment that might never become viable, will serve to deny LBH the ability to maximise revenue streams/capital receipts and remove some of the blight that affects Seven Sisters as an important gateway site.