Council urgently seeking progress on Tricorn House

10:32am Friday 14th March 2008

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STROUD District Council has taken steps to force the owner of Tricorn House to sell the property for redevelopment.

And Stroud-based green energy firm ecotricity has approached both the building's owner and the council about taking it over to expand and create new jobs.

At a meeting of the council's cabinet last night, an emergency motion was tabled to use compulsory purchasing powers to buy the concrete carbuncle, which blights the main entrance into Stroud from the M5.

"The decaying building is a monstrosity, but worse still is that it is at one of the most prominent locations in the district," said council leader Chas Fellows after the meeting.

"Its presence depresses everyone who sees it. It has a negative impact on investors, tourists and residents and even people driving through the town. "It's time for us to take control and make things happen."

In the report to cabinet, chief executive David Hagg discussed the accelerated decline of the building and concerns of residents regarding anti-social behaviour and community safety.

The cabinet recommended that the council pushes forward with plans for a compulsory purchase order following unfavourable talks with the building's owner Wellfair Holdings this week.

Mr Hagg's report states that the council would seek a legally binding back to back' agreement which would see the building sold on immediately to a third party. This would minimise the council's financial risk.

Tricorn House was valued at £1.3milliion only three months ago and according to its agents offers have previously been made by at least three separate prospective buyers, none of which were taken forward.

Unless Wellfair Holdings broker its own deal to sell the building, it is likely that a public inquiry would be held to determine whether the comulsory purchase order should go through.

The building was vacated over ten years ago by the Department of Social Security and since then has remained empty and derelict.

After the cabinet meeting Nigel Studdert-Kennedy, the council's cabinet member for regeneration and tourism, said: "This enormous disused building blights the landscape and is a magnet for anti-social behaviour.

"It's a big site, which could help employment and regeneration in this town. "We were hoping that the owners would be able to develop the site or sell it on, but this just isn't happening, so it's time for us to take some positive action."

Ecotricity founder Dale Vince said: "It's good news that the council are taking action on this, we've been trying to buy the site for two years and have been rebuffed repeatedly.

"There are very few sites in Stroud that could take the size of building we'regoingto need over the next few years, in fact this is probably the only one.

"We're currently 150 people and growing fast and would love to stay on Stroud and build a very special headquarters on the site of Tricorn House - a real landmark building and something at the cutting edge,architecturallyand environmentally."