POW25 - Country Parks for the Future - Strathclyde Country Park Green Growth Accelerator
North Lanarkshire Council · 8 February 2023
Back to Environment and Climate Change Committee — 8 February 2023 and its agenda
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North Lanarkshire Council Report Environment and Climate Change Committee Does this report require to be approved? ☒ Yes ☐ No Ref AM/VA/CM Date 08/02/23 POW25 – Country Parks for the Future - Strathclyde Country Park Green Growth Accelerator From Andrew McPherson, Chief Officer (Community Operations) E-mail Mcphersona@northlan.gov.uk Telephone 07939 280467 Executive Summary This report updates committee on the conclusion of the Green Growth Accelerator (GGA) pathfinder project developing a proposal to extend and upgrade the current Watersports Centre at Strathclyde Country Park including renewable energy generation solutions. The report also outlines the next steps for project delivery and highlights key areas for decisions. The GGA pathfinder grant paid for over 75% of the costs of developing plans through to Riba Stage 2 based on the project providing an exemplar for retrofitting renewable energy to existing public sector facilities. Developing the project not only delivers against the council’s Country Parks for the Future program by tackling one of the flagship proposals in the adopted Masterplan for Strathclyde Country Park, but also delivers against the council ambition to be Net Zero by 2030. The project is forecast to reduce carbon emissions by 90%. During the lifetime of the project energy prices have dramatically increased, increasing the urgency for delivery of projects which control not only carbon emissions but also costs. The estimated cost of the project is currently £15 million. The Scottish Government have advised that they will award a Green Growth Accelerator funding agreement of £10million in revenue payments over 10years subject to the project delivering successfully. The remaining funding comes from Country Parks for the Future capital allocation, Placed Based Investment program and Shared Prosperity. Recommendations It is recommended that committee: 1. Recognises the successful outcome of the GGA pathfinder process. 2. Supports further work to develop and deliver a fully funded project. The Plan for North Lanarkshire Priority Improve North Lanarkshire's resource base Ambition statement (16) Transform our natural environment to support wellbeing and inward investment and enhance it for current and future generations
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1. Background 1.1 The need to modernise the Watersports Centre and provide updated public services, including space for delivery of the outdoor education program, was recognised during the master planning process for Strathclyde Country Park and approved by Policy and Strategy committee in March 2020. The Watersports Centre was completed in 1976 and has only received limited infrastructure budget since, with minor interior décor upgrades, and a recent upgrade to outdoor education provision. The windows, heating, and roofing throughout are all the original, resulting in a very aging fabric with poor insulation, spaces that are not fit for purpose, poor energy efficiency and a poor quality visitor environment. The building is well past the age that similar council assets have been upgraded. 1.2 The Council have been investigating green energy solutions linked to parks for several years through a Scotland wide Park Power research project led by Greenspace Scotland. Strathclyde Country Park (SCP) was identified by independent consultants as a site with very high potential. 1.3 In August 2021, a bid was submitted to the Scottish Government for the renewable energy led redevelopment of the Watersports Centre to be a pathfinder project for the new Green Growth Accelerator programme. It was one of only 5 pathfinder projects accepted and received a revenue grant of £120k which covered a significant proportion of the costs of developing the project to RIBA stage 2. This process was taken forward utilising multi-disciplinary consultancy procured through Hub SW. 1.4 The pathfinder process involved the production of a business case for the proposed redevelopment, required prior to the Scottish Government considering a bid from the council for £10m in funding to support the delivery of the project. 2. Report 2.1 Upgrades to the Watersports Centre focus on creating new renewable energy generated from heat in the loch water, transferred to the building by a heat pump, and electricity generated from a solar canopy over one of the car parks. The building will require to be improved in terms of energy efficiency to utilise the heat from the loch and similarly requires internal reconfiguration to meet modern service needs (public and staff) and an extension to accommodate functions currently provided externally to the building in less energy efficient ways. To a lesser extent the project also investigated renewable energy considerations throughout the park, including replacing temporary buildings with a renovated Bothwellhaugh Cottage, improvements to street lighting and installing more Electric Vehicle charging. 2.2 While the main driver of the Green Growth Accelerator funding is to find ways of decreasing the carbon footprint of old municipal buildings, the benefits to the council and communities will be much wider. The refurbished building would enable: • A ground floor modern waterfront café to be created, which will be a significant visitor and tourism asset. • Improved visitor welcome space including a modern reception area, a multipurpose auditorium and a flexible atrium area as a gateway to park facilities. • Modernised watersports changing facilities encouraging increased usage of watersports facilities by the community. • Dedicated space for Edinburgh University Rowing Club creating a secure revenue stream and creating a partnership with the University and Scottish Rowing to encourage youth rowing pathways.
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• Improved office, hot desk and flexible meeting space for on-site and wider council staff. • Improved welcome areas for the outdoor education programme. • An opportunity to separate operational arboricultural maintenance staff and machinery to a separate site away from public spaces by relocating them to Bothwellhaugh Cottage. 2.3 This business case has been presented to the Scottish Government and was well received. It includes proposals for metrics, which will form the basis of SG revenue payments of up to £10million to the council over a 10-year basis, conditional on performance. These are proposed as: Generation of renewable heat and power (installation of Water Source Heat Pump and 1100m2 Solar Photovoltaic system) 90% reduction in carbon emissions, totalling 138,590kgCo2e per year associated with energy consumption reduction of 148,192kWhrs per year across Strathclyde Park. Establishment of a low carbon travel hub, enabling solar-powered electric vehicle charging and travel. A 20% increase in number of educational establishments benefitting from outdoor learning on site. It should be noted that if the metrics are only partially achieved, the grant would be proportional. Budget overview 2.4 Cost estimates for the project elements are outlined below. Item Cost Estimate Rationale for inclusion Watersports Centre Redevelopment £12.1mil Enables significant energy savings and facilitates removal of temporary accommodation. Improved visitor experience. Reduced operating costs. Bothwellhaugh Cottage £0.25 mil Currently derelict building to be utilised as a base for Arboriculture who cannot be hosted in WSC. Reduces council liability. EV Charging and Street lighting Improvements £0.25mil Contributes to Carbon Savings. Improved public facilities. NLC Contingency £1.2mil Calculated on current design stage. Likely to reduce as project progresses through remainder of RIBA design stages. Inflationary Increase Allowance £1mil Based on QS Projections Building Warrant, Planning Fees etc £0.2mil Based on sq meterage of development TOTAL £ 15mil All project elements are required to meet the metrics for the main GGA grant. 2.5 The estimated costs currently contain a 10% composite risk contingency which the QS use as standard. An additional council client contingency has been set at 10% in line with assessed risks. The QS have also provided an estimate for inflation based on a construction midpoint of Q2 2024.
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2.6 The GGA project is likely to be subject to the same inflationary risks as other council projects as inflation rates surge at the fastest rates seen in 30 years and supply chain issues continue to impact on delivery timescales. 2.7 The funding matrix for the project is shown below: Source Value Status GGA revenue agreement £10,000,000 Provisionally accepted as pathfinder Country Parks For the Future £3,400,000 Secured Place Based Investment Program £1,000,000 Secured, subject to Board approval UK Shared Prosperity fund £400,000 Secured Revenue Savings £200,000 Calculated over lifetime of project. TOTAL £15,000,000 2.8 The £3.4M allocation from the Country Parks for the Future capital budget will have an impact on the previous capital programme and a number of projects will now be reprofiled to determine whether they can be delivered if other external funding can be realised. 2.9 The Council’s capital investment borrowing costs are managed through the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB). There would not be a single loan covering the borrowing needed to deliver the capital works associated with the redevelopment of the Watersports Centre. Borrowing from PWLB would be offset in its entirety by the Scottish Government GGA main grant if metrics are met. Project Programme Framework 2.10 An indicative timeframe is detailed below. Item / Milestone Comment Start Complete Project initiation Jan 2023 Feb 2023 Funding offers accepted by NLC Jan 2023 Procurement - Hub SW Feb 2023 April 2023 Detailed design and planning approval March 2023 August 2023 Construction Sept 2023 May 2025 3. Measures of success • Renovated Watersports Centre and associated park facilities operating at near net zero carbon emissions, contributing to net zero ambition. • Increased visitor numbers to building and park, leading to health and wellbeing improvements • Increased catering income, improving long term economic outlook for NLC and potential job creation. 4. Supporting documentation Appendix 1 - Visualisations
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Andrew McPherson Chief Officer (Community Operations)
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5. Impacts ( http://connect/report-template-guidance ) 5.1 Public Sector Equality Duty and Fairer Scotland Duty Does the report contain information that has an impact as a result of the Public Sector Equality Duty and/or Fairer Scotland Duty? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? If Yes, has an assessment been carried out and published on the council’s website? https://www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/your-community/equalities/equality-and-fairer- scotland-duty-impact-assessments Yes ☐ No ☒ 5.2 Financial impact Does the report contain any financial impacts? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, have all relevant financial impacts have been discussed and agreed with Financial Solutions? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? To enable a business case to be approved by the Scottish Government Financial solutions have been involved in development and project board approvals. The project will utilise Country Parks for the Future capital allocation, which will significantly reduce the range of other country parks projects delivered in the current programme, unless alternative external funding is secured. 5.3 HR policy impact Does the report contain any HR policy or procedure impacts? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant HR impacts have been discussed and agreed with People and Organisational Development? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.4 Legal impact Does the report contain any legal impacts (such as general legal matters, statutory considerations (including employment law considerations), or new legislation)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, have all relevant legal impacts have been discussed and agreed with Legal and Democratic Solutions? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.5 Data protection impact Does the report / project / practice contain or involve the processing of personal data? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, is the processing of this personal data likely to result in a high risk to the data subject? Yes ☐ No ☐ If Yes, has a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) been carried out and e- mailed to dataprotection@northlan.gov.uk Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.6 Technology / Digital impact
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Does the report contain information that has an impact on either technology, digital transformation, service redesign / business change processes, data management, or connectivity / broadband / Wi-Fi? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? Where the impact identifies a requirement for technology, has an assessment been carried out (or scheduled) by the Enterprise Architecture Governance Group (EAGG)? Yes ☐ No ☐ 5.7 Environmental / Carbon impact Does the report / project / practice contain information that has an impact on any environmental or carbon matters? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? The proposed project significantly reduces carbon emissions and provides a clearly defined pathway to reduce emissions associated with existing buildings and/or new build projects. 5.8 Communications impact Does the report contain any information that has an impact on the council’s communications activities? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the impact? 5.9 Risk impact Is there a risk impact? Yes ☒ No ☐ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the key risks and potential impacts, highlighting where the risk(s) are assessed and recorded (e.g. Corporate or Service or Project Risk Registers), and how they are managed? The risks associated with the project are being recorded and monitored via the NLC project management documentation system. 5.10 Armed Forces Covenant Duty Does the report require to take due regard of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty (i.e. does it relate to healthcare, housing, or education services for in-Service or ex- Service personnel, or their families, or widow(er)s)? Yes ☐ No ☒ If Yes, please provide a brief summary of the provision which has been made to ensure there has been appropriate consideration of the particular needs of the Armed Forces community to make sure that they do not face disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public services.
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Appendix 1 – Architects Visual Impressions
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