Buildings face sale in Town Hall cuts
9:01am Saturday 4th September 2010 in Your Town
TOWN Hall bosses are looking at selling off under-used council buildings in a bid to bring in millions of pounds to balance the books.
The whole of Bolton Council’s 40-plus estate of administration buildings — including the Town Hall — is to be looked at as the authority decides which buildings it can either sell or pull out of leases to.
And while council chiefs say there is no chance of the Town Hall in Victoria Square, or similar civic headquarters in Farnworth, Westhoughton and the public hall in Horwich, being put on the market, other buildings with less historic or geographic ties could soon be up for sale.
The cash-strapped council is being forced to slash 40 per cent from its budget over the next four years as part of the coalition Government’s drive to cut the national deficit.
Council leader Cllr Cliff Morris has set the wheels in motion and a report concludes that by selling off an unspecified number of buildings, the council could raise almost £8 million with ongoing annual savings — such as utility bills and upkeep — of £570,000.
By ending lease agreements early on 14 other buildings, it is estimated about £500,000 could be saved. No buildings have yet been identified and no jobs are at risk.
Paul Brown, the council’s director of corporate resources, said: “We are looking at the whole estate and obviously within that there are some buildings which we are wedded-into, such as the Town Hall, and these are the ones that are most likely to be retained.”
Before any building is disposed of, a review is to be carried out. There will then be a consultation on the list of buildings which face the axe before a decision is made by the council.
Cllr Morris said: “It does not impact on people but it will help us to realise some of the savings we need to make.”
Westhoughton Cllr David Wilkinson, deputy leader of the town’s Liberal Democrats, welcomed the report.
He said: “I think it is good that we are looking at utilising the outlying Town Halls, such as the one in Westhoughton. If we have a council building and it can be disposed of, then we should look at whether we can do that.”
Brian Tetlow, chairman of the Bolton Civic Trust, said: “I would be in favour of such a move, as long as it does not impact on some of the more historic buildings.”
