Stalled plans to build a “vibrant new quarter” in central Bath could soon get back in motion as the council is set to establish a partnership to build 96 homes in the city centre.
An artist’s impression of plots six and seven at Bath Quays North | Image © B&NES Council
The Bath Quays North project will see the Avon Street and Green Park Road car parks turned into city blocks and pedestrianised streets, with new offices and homes.
In 2019, Bath & North East Somerset Council described the project as “the most significant development in Bath in a generation”, but the company which had been set to deliver the development, Legal & General, pulled out after Covid, and building work never started.
The council said the project had “stalled” and it is now taking the housebuilding on the site into its own hands.
The council cabinet will vote at its meeting on Thursday, 13th November, on establishing a limited liability partnership (LLP) with its wholly council-owned building company, Aequus, to deliver the 96 homes planned at the development.
A report going before the cabinet meeting said accountants had advised that forming an LLP would be the most efficient model for the council.
It said: “The LLP would be a commercial entity and capable of taking risks that the council might not.”
The report said the council is now prioritising getting the planned housing built while it finds a new development partner to take on the wider scheme.
Last year, it signed a memorandum of understanding with the University of Bath to look at taking over the Bath Quays North redevelopment.
The university said it would look at using the location to create new spaces for research, innovation and “enterprise activities”.
Although the main part of the development on Avon Street Car Park was granted planning permission last year, the new LLP would build the homes on Green Park Road Car Park, which currently only has outline planning permission.
Aequus submitted a planning application for the final reserved matters planning permission in January.
Council cabinet member for built environment, housing, and sustainable development Matt McCabe said at the time: “Aequus’s planning application is part of a mix of housing options that will help us diversify housing supply locally and include open market, affordable and social housing right across B&NES.
“Building these homes as the first phase of Bath Quays North will help support further investment for affordable homes in later phases.”
The LLP is being created solely for the Bath Quays development. But if the model proves successful, the council could create separate LLPs for regeneration projects in future.
The report said: “The LLP approach is expected to deliver additional financial benefits supporting the council in achieving its regeneration ambitions while generating measurable financial and social value.”
Using an LLP, instead of a company, means the council’s share of the profits from the development would not be subject to corporation tax. The report said this could be recycled to support its regeneration and housing duties.
At its meeting on Thursday, the council cabinet will vote to establish the partnership and loan it the development costs.
The full business case behind the scheme has been exempted from the public documents, something councils are allowed to do when a document is commercially sensitive or contains privileged legal information.
You can view the planning application for the homes here.
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter
