Agenda item

To note the action taken in accordance with the Urgency Procedure. 

That the action taken in accordance with the Urgency Procedure be NOTED.  

22.1           The report of the Finance and Asset Management Group Manager, circulated at Pages No. 188-191, advised the Committee of action taken under the Urgency Procedure in respect of the Roses Theatre refurbishment project. Members were asked to note the action taken.

22.2           Members were advised that under the terms of the lease on the Roses Theatre, the Council had the responsibility for the roof of the Theatre which, following an inspection, had been identified as being in need of urgent and substantial repair and replacement. To address the issues, and to work alongside the Roses Theatre Trust with its plans to refurbish the interior of the building, the Council had approved an injection of funding of £150,000.The tenders received for the work on the roof had been much higher than expected due, in part, to the demand for roofing contractors during the summer months, and partly due to the fact that the development industry overall was in greater demand than it had been previously. In terms of the timing of the works, Members were advised that the refurbishment would take place over the summer months as that was the Theatre’s quietest performance period and, since the Theatre needed to be closed for the duration of the works, this was the option that made the most business sense. The newly refurbished building would open in late September to allow for the autumn and Christmas performance schedules which were obviously much busier.

22.3           To enable acceptance of the roofing tender, the appropriate budgetary provision had to be in place and, in light of this, an urgent decision request had been made to the Deputy Chief Executive, in consultation with the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee and the decision had been taken to allow the virement of £100,000 to support the required work at the Theatre. There would, in the longer term, be a cost benefit to the Council as the overall improvements would benefit the Council as the owner of the building.

22.4           In response to a query regarding the reason for the increase in costs, the Deputy Chief Executive advised that, in addition to the reasons already noted, when the work on the roof had begun the contractors had found asbestos that had not been identified within the condition survey. Members questioned why this had been the case and in response, the Deputy Chief Executive was unsure how this had occurred and assured Members that she would investigate. She did, however, reiterate that the additional £100,000 was not required purely due to the asbestos in the roof, although that had increased the costs slightly. In terms of maintenance, the Deputy Chief Executive confirmed that the Roses Theatre was no different to any of the Council’s other assets in that it needed to be maintained to ensure its future going forward; it would otherwise become a burden to the Council that it could not afford. The Theatre was extremely well thought of by the Arts Council which perceived it as one of the best cultural venues in the Country. In addition, the benefit that it brought to residents of the Borough in terms of its outreach work, its community and schools work and its use as an arts centre as well as a Theatre was exceptional. Members generally expressed the view that the Theatre was of great benefit to the Borough and that it brought a lot of enjoyment to many residents. One Member indicated that the Council should also remember that it had another such asset in Cleeve Hill Golf Club and he reminded Officers that there was a lot of work required on that asset to bring it up to a good standard.

22.5           Having considered the report, it was