Tarbert Heritage Regeneration Scheme (Hrs) Development Phase Update
Argyll and Bute Council · 5 June 2024
Back to Mid Argyll, Kintyre & the Islands Area Committee — 5 June 2024 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL MID ARGYLL, KINTYRE AND THE ISLANDS AREA COMMITTEE DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 5 JUNE 2024 TARBERT HERITAGE REGENERATION SCHEME (HRS) DEVELOPMENT PHASE UPDATE 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1. The purpose of this report is to update Members on the progress of the Tarbert Heritage Regeneration Scheme (HRS) Development Phase. 1.2. Historic Environment Scotland’s Heritage and Place Programme (HPP) and the National Lottery Grants of Heritage have joined forces to jointly provide area- based funding to support the regeneration of Scotland’s places and create better places to live, work and visit. 1.3. At the Council meeting on 29 June 2023, Members agreed to commission the Tarbert HRS Development Phase to allow preparatory work to start to fully assess the condition of buildings within Tarbert’s village centre, with the intention to follow up with a future Delivery Phase application. 1.4. Detailed preparatory development works started in August 2023 and encompass survey analysis in relation to properties within the scheme boundary, including shopfronts. In addition, the comprehensive survey analysis of three buildings (Argyll Place, Glendale and Bracken Hill) of particular architectural interest is being undertaken, and detailed associated costs of repair will be produced. The scoping work will also incorporate a consultation exercise to invite feedback from property owners and the community on the proposed works. 1.5. In addition to the above, consultants have been commissioned to produce a Tarbert Area Character Appraisal (ACA) and Area Management Plan (AMP) and to do this in conjunction with community support and consultation. This piece of work is ongoing and a draft will be available in September 2024. 1.6. A cost analysis will inform the outcomes of the potential projects that will be put forward for the Delivery Phase of the scheme. The potential projects will be provided in detail at the September 2024 Area Committee. Each aforementioned fully costed scheme would require a financial contribution from the Council over a 5 year delivery period. If our Delivery Phase application is successful, the Council would be required to identify funding towards the Delivery Phase costs.
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1.7. A Delivery Phase application for the Tarbert HRS would be subject to a competitive process. Whilst the Council has successfully secured funding to assist with projects in Dunoon, Rothesay, Campbeltown, Helensburgh, Lochgilphead and Inveraray in the past, there is however no guarantee that a bid would prove successful. 2.0 RECOMMENDATIONS 2.1 It is recommended that members: i) Consider the content of this paper. ii) Agree to make a Delivery Phase submission to Historic Environment Scotland (HES) and National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) for Heritage and Place Programme (HPP) funding. iii) Note that if the Delivery Phase application is successful the Council would be required to identify funding towards the Delivery Phase costs. 3.0 DETAIL 3.1 Historic Environment Scotland’s Heritage and Place Programme (HPP) and the National Lottery Grants of Heritage have joined forces to jointly provide area-based funding to support the regeneration of Scotland’s places and create better places to live, work and visit. 3.2 The HPP supersedes the Conservation Area Regeneration Scheme (CARS) funding, which HES made available over eight rounds between 2007 and 2019. Over the course of the 12 year period, the Council successfully secured eight rounds of CARS funding, equating to £6.6m, and which totals £23m of investment made to 6 key Argyll and Bute town centres, when match funding is taken into account. 3.3 The Council has been successful in its applications to the HPP and Heritage Fund to develop the Tarbert Heritage Regeneration Scheme (HRS) and submit a Delivery Phase application for a 5 year scheme. The Council was one out of the eight Local Authorities successful in the competitive process, with the majority of those projects located in the Central Belt, and only two including Tarbert from the Highlands and Islands region. 3.4 The Council secured £40,000 from the HPP and £40,000 from the Heritage Fund for a Development Phase. The Council confirmed £60,000 of match funding through Crown Estates Funding, to allow officers to progress with the Development Phase, agreed at Council in June 2023.
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3.5 So far, the Council have appointed a Project Officer for the Tarbert Heritage Regeneration Scheme and also conservation accredited architects who will develop the scheme and produce the submission of the Delivery Phase application; engaging with the community and the area partnership group to help shape the project’s key actions; priority building surveys and cost analysis; and a material and skills audit. 3.6 There has been limited interest from tenderers to date, meaning we have only been able to appoint consultants for 4 out of 8 lots of work. Consultants who will develop the evaluation criteria, training and events plans, and audience development for the scheme are still to be appointed. We have revised the briefs for these pieces of work with help from NLHF and Argyll and Bute Council’s Procurement Team and have posted on Public Contract Scotland (PCS) in order to gain wider interest. It should be noted that a draft of all 8 lots of work is due to be submitted to the funder at the end of July 2024 if we are aiming for a November 2024 application submission. Therefore, if we are not successful in obtaining tenderers in this round, we may need to postpone the application until March 2025. 3.7 The funders require significant public consultation to take place prior to submitting a Delivery Phase application. We are working with the funders to make sure that we adequately cover this requirement but this may also preclude us from being able to submit an application in November 2024. 3.8 It should also be noted that if the Council was successful in the Delivery Phase application, there will be a requirement to identify Council funding towards the Delivery Phase costs. For the Delivery Phase, HES will grant support of up to 50% of the costs and grants will typically range between £750k and £1.5m. For the Heritage Fund, grant requests between £250k to £1m, require a contribution of at least 5% of total costs, and applications between £1m - £10m require a contribution of at least 10% of total costs. 3.9 It is difficult to estimate costs for the 5 year Delivery Phase at this stage as the Development Phase activity is ongoing, but previous levels of match funding from the Council in regard to CARS has been in the region of £500k and with the current economic climate we anticipate around £650k of Council match funding, seeking under £1m from each of the funders for a £2-£3m scheme. There is the option for capital funding to come from future Crown Estate funding and it would be spread over a 5 year period. Also, there is an option of Private Sector Housing Grant funding for the match, which would also include a contribution from building owners as part of the match funding package. 3.10 Officers will update Council on final costs prior to the submission of the Delivery Phase application which is currently anticipated to be in November 2024. If this application date changes, due to a lack of interest from tenderers in the outstanding lots of work and the funder’s requirements for public consultation, Officers will update Members at the next Area Committee. 4.0 CONCLUSION
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4.1 This report provides an update for the Area Committee on the progress with the Development Phase of the Tarbert Regeneration Scheme. It should be noted that the interest from tenderers has been limited and if this current procurement drive is not successful, we may need to postpone the Delivery Phase application date to March 2025. 4.2 A cost analysis will inform the outcomes of the potential projects that will be put forward for the Delivery Phase of the scheme. The potential projects will be provided in detail at the September 2024 Area Committee. Each aforementioned fully costed scheme would require a financial contribution from the Council over a 5 year delivery period. If our Delivery Phase application is successful, the Council would be required to identify funding towards the Delivery Phase costs. 5.0 IMPLICATIONS 5.1 Policy - The scheme aligns with objectives set out in the Council’s Corporate Plan and Economic Strategy. 5.2 Financial - If successful in the Delivery Phase application, the Council will require to commit match funding for this phase, spread over a 5 year period. It is difficult to estimate costs at this stage as this will be established through Development Phase activity, but previous levels of match funding in regard to CARS has been in the region of £500k and with the current economic climate, we anticipate around £650k of Council match funding required. There is the option for capital funding to come from future Crown Estate funding as well as Private Sector Housing Grant funding. Contribution from building owners would also form part of the match funding package. 5.3 Legal - Council will comply with funding requirements of both HPP and Heritage Fund programmes. 5.4 HR - Staff resources will be required to undertake the necessary work to support the Project Officer in submission of the Delivery Phase application. 5.5 Fairer Scotland Duty: 5.5.1 Equalities - protected characteristics – None. 5.5.2 Socio-economic Duty - Funding is designed to offer improved socio- economic opportunities for local communities. 5.5.3 Islands – None. 5.6 Climate Change - It is a requirement from the funders to fully consider and propose climate mitigation measures within the Development and Delivery Phases of the project. 5.7 Risk - There is a risk to align both HES and NLHF programmes, however, both funders have stated that they are working closely to make this as aligned as possible. The scheme is reliant on strong support from the local community and building owners including businesses. It is anticipated that we will be successful
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with our Delivery Phase application, however, as this is a competitive process there is a risk we will not proceed to the Delivery Phase. 5.8 Customer Service – None. 5.9 The Rights of the Child (UNCRC) – None. Kirsty Flanagan, Executive Director with responsibility for Development and Economic Growth Councillor Math Campbell-Sturgess, Policy Lead for Business Development 19 April 2024 For further information contact: Fergus Murray, Head of Development and Economic Growth Fergus.Murray@argyll-bute.gov.uk Jonathan Welch, Transformational Projects and Regeneration Manager Jonathan.Welch@argyll-bute.gov.uk