Issue - meetings

1)     Delegate authority to the Assistant Director (Finance & Resources) to proceed with the project and formally tender the building contract subject to obtaining conditional approval of planning permission;

2)     Subject to contract bids falling within the budget previously approved, and detailed within the Part II element of this report, delegate authority to the Corporate Director (Finance and Operations) in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Finance and Resources to award the building contract.

Decision

1)     That authority is delegated to the Assistant Director (Finance & Resources) to proceed with the project and formally tender the building contract subject to obtaining conditional approval of planning permission;

2)     Subject to contract bids falling within the budget previously approved, and detailed within the Part II element of the report to Cabinet, that authority is delegated to the Corporate Director (Finance and Operations) in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Finance and Resources to award the building contract.

Reason for Decision

To seek authorisation to proceed and agree delegated authority for tendering and awarding the building contract and other project management issues for the multi-story car park (MSCP) subject to the receipt of Planning Permission.

Implications

Financial

Detailed specific financial costings are not available until bids are received but market assessments and soft market testing indicate that the original baseline figures supplied in the January 2014 report are still valid. The original project budget as set out in Table2 of the Part II report is still correct. The budgetary implications of this report are detailed further in the Part II report.

Value for Money

The project will produce a return on investment for the Council consistent with the parameters agreed by Cabinet in February 2014.

Health & Safety Implications

Health and Safety issues will be considered as part of the project risk assessment for delivering the project.

Community Impact Assessment

Community Impact Assessment updated

Corporate Objectives

Building strong and vibrant communities

Ensuring economic growth and prosperity

Delivering an efficient and modern council

Monitoring Officer/S.151 Officer Comments

Monitoring Officer

Tendering for the build contract will require a formal regulated procurement process and officers will need to ensure that an appropriate construction contract is agreed with the preferred contractor in due course.

S.151 Officer

This is a Section 151 Officer report.

Advice

The Assistant Director for Finance & Resources explained that this was the final stage of a 3 stage approach. The next stages would look at the tendering process for the contract with a view to the plans being discussed in September.

The Leader of the council noted that this was a key ambition for the administration to deliver.

Voting

None.