By John Baron
Council chiefs have refused to confirm the final sale price of Pudsey Town Hall – but have said ‘there was nothing more they could have done’ to secure the building for community use.
As reported last month, the council has accepted an unnamed developer’s bid to buy Pudsey Town Hall, and the sale is currently progressing through the legal process.
Speaking at today’s full council meeting Councillor Andrew Carter (Cons, Calverley & Farsley) asked the Labour administration to confirm the offer price accepted for Pudsey Town Hall, which he claimed was less than £600,000.
Deputy Council Leader and Executive Member for Communities Cllr Debra Coupar (Lab, Temple Newsam) responded: “You know that I’ve worked with yourself when you were leader of your group on this particular building.
“And I have worked with ward members – Cllr Trish Smith (Reform, Pudsey) – for many years to try to get a resolution for Pudsey Town Hall that was suitable for community use.
“Unfortunately that wasn’t possible. Pudsey Town Hall was placed on the open market. Five offers were received. The transaction has yet to complete and, as such, it would not be appropriate to publicly divulge the value.
“However, once completed, the value will be displayed on the title held on the Land Registry Portal.”
Cllr Carter replied: “It is of great interest to the people of Pudsey. I realise it is commercially sensitive and I would suggest from your point of view it was highly politically sensitive.
“Can we expect the sale price to be made public before the local elections so the people of Pudsey can ascertain exactly what you have given the building away for?
“Secondly, can you also reassure me that if the building is ultimately sold, that a share of that money will go to the people of Pudsey via their elected representatives – I mean all six, not just three – to make sure there is some investment in Pudsey itself?”
Cllr Carter said around 5,000 electors in Calverley & Farsley ward who identified as being part of Pudsey.
Cllr Coupar replied: “I have to point out that we are not ‘giving the building away’, the building is being sold. I have already stated at this point in time we cannot divulge what that value is as it is commercially sensitive.
“If the building sale is complete before and we can divulge that information to you we will do so.
“For councillors in Pudsey and Calverley & Farsley, I know the importance of this building and I am also disappointed that we were unable to come to a solution that the community and the CIC could have taken over this building.
“I did work for a lot of hours on this to try to come to a solution that would be really suitable. Unfortunately we couldn’t do so.
“After six years of trying, we would have not done the right thing as a council [if we didn’t] try to protect tax payers’ money. We needed to move on with the sale of the building.
“It’s unfortunate for the people who were involved, and I accept that, but I don’t think there was anything more that this administration could have done to get it the position that you needed it to be in.”
Council chiefs are selling the building as they struggle to balance the books after years of underfunding from central government and rising costs of provision in adult social care.
The move has proven unpopular in Pudsey, including opposition from local councillors and two petitions each with more than 1,000 signatures.
Pudsey Town Hall CIC had been hoping to use the building as a mixed-use community and enterprise hub.
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