To seek approval for preparatory steps to be taken to acquire by agreement or make a potential compulsory purchase order for land at Faraday Road, Hereford, which is shown outlined in red on Appendix 1 (the "Land").  The Land is allocated for employment use at policy HE5 of the adopted UDP, and the Land is also needed for the relocation of businesses from within the ESG area as part of the wider redevelopment of the ESG area.

A further report to progress to acquire by agreement or to make any compulsory purchase order will be required.

THAT: Cabinet

a)      Authorises negotiations with the owners of all interests in the land at Faraday Road in an attempt to acquire the land by agreement;

b)     Agrees that the Council will in principle consider using its powers of compulsory purchase to promote an Order for the compulsory purchase of the Land and authorises preparatory steps to be taken as required in tandem with negotiations to acquire by agreement; and

Notes that if the Land cannot be acquired by agreement, a further report confirming the financial implications and options available to the Council, and recommending a preferred course of action, will be prepared for Cabinet. 

During the redevelopment of the area known as the Edgar Street Grid the Council will seek to relocate existing businesses located within development sites to new land and premises within Hereford. The majority of these businesses would wish to remain within the boundaries of Hereford City to the north of the river Wye.

Consequently there is a need to secure suitable employment sites within the area of Hereford to the north of the river Wye. Although a number of vacant units are currently available on the market, the location, quality, planning use, and general suitability for relocated businesses is mixed and the units are scattered throughout the northern part of the City.

Faraday Road is allocated as employment land within the current UDP, and if acquired would provide a strategic site on which a range of new units for employment use could be constructed to meet the needs of relocated businesses from the ESG area, in a location close to the existing ESG site. Faraday Road is currently the only sizeable employment development site north of the river Wye.

An alternative option is continuing to await the coming forward of employment proposals from the existing landowner. However, the current landowner has shown no willingness to progress such proposals and it is considered that a key employment site should not be lost.

In relation to the ESG relocations, an alternative is to investigate the potential to acquire numerous smaller plots of vacant employment land or units as an alternative to acquiring one strategic site. However, the businesses would need to agree to relocate to any such sites, and currently this Land is considered to be the only sizeable, cleared, employment development site with vacant possession north of the river of strategic value. The implications of this site not coming forward for employment land for the ESG redevelopment would be to reduce the risk of not being able to acquire the required amount of relocation land for ESG relocations. The benefits of securing a cleared and serviced site for relocations in proximity to the city centre, with vacant possession, north of the river (reduced acquisition costs, no demolition costs, creation of new business destination) would not be realised.