Land Transactions under Standing Order 168(3) – Lime Grove House acquisition – in principle.

STATES OF JERSEY

LAND TRANSACTIONS UNDER STANDING ORDER 168(3) –

LIME GROVE HOUSE ACQUISITION – IN PRINCIPLE

Presented to the States on 29th June 2011 by the Minister for Treasury and Resources

STATES GREFFE

2011   Price code: B  R.78

REPORT

Decision(s): Under Standing Order 168(3) the Minister for Treasury and Resources hereby notifies the States that he has accepted the recommendation of the Property Holdings Department to agree to the following –

Land transaction –

1. To approve  the  purchase  of  Lime  Grove  House,  Green  Street,   St. Helier , Jersey.
2. To confirm the above decision after giving the States 15 working days' notice of the transaction, and to cause the transaction to be completed.

The Minister hereby authorises the Attorney General and the Greffier of the States to pass any contract which is required to be passed on behalf of the Public.

After the expiry of 15 days following presentation to the States the transaction may be concluded.

(Drawing attached at Appendix.)

Further information on this decision can be found on www.gov.je under Ministerial Decisions/Treasury and Resources/Property Holdings (reference MD-TR-2011-0080).

Background

Whilst Members will appreciate the need to maintain commercial confidentiality, the background and overall reasoning for this proposed acquisition is set out below.

The Minister for Treasury and Resources has notified his intention to purchase Lime Grove House, which forms part of a two-stage approach to meeting the needs of the States of Jersey Police. Lime Grove House will be used to accommodate a range of office-based  operational  and  administrative  functions  currently  located  on  the Summerland and Rouge Bouillon sites.

The project to relocate the States of Jersey Police has a long history. Work began in the late 1990s, with funding originally inscribed within the 2004–2008 Resource Plan, based on a new facility on the Esplanade Car Park site. Since then, the project has been through many iterations, including 2 feasibility studies, the evaluation of over 20 sites and the development of specific schemes to meet operational requirements.

The need to address issues relating to the States of Jersey Police operational and administrative premises has become critical. In addition to having to operate within buildings that have far exceeded their economic life with significant maintenance backlog, existing facilities do not meet Home Office guidelines and are not suitable for the operation of a modern Police service.

In proposing this acquisition, the Minister for Treasury and Resources has carried out a thorough evaluation of the options to meet the needs of the States of Jersey Police,

including a full financial appraisal undertaken by the Treasury. The preferred option has been identified as a two-stage project:

Stage 1:  Acquire, fit out and move to Lime Grove House to accommodate a range of

office-based functions. This will vacate all of the Summerland Site and the old school building on the Rouge Bouillon site.

Stage 2:  Undertake refurbishment/redevelopment of existing facilities on the Rouge

Bouillon site to create a modern Police Station, including custody suite facilities.

The work to evaluate options has confirmed that Lime Grove House forms the central part  of  an  option  which represents the  least  cost,  enables  the  majority  of  Police requirements to be met quickly (i.e. within c.12 months) and frees up the whole of the Summerland site for alternative use as a housing site.

This option has the full support of the States of Jersey Police and the Minister for Home Affairs. The States of Jersey Police can consolidate all office-based functions within one modern building which enables not only the effective use of space, but will also  co-locate  functions  currently  spread  across  5 buildings  to  improve  ways  of working and collaboration within the Force. This also allows the Police to focus its operational  policing  and  custody  facilities  in  one  Police  Station  dedicated  to operational  delivery.  Two  sites  will  also  enable  the  Police  to  provide  improved disaster recovery and business continuity facilities.

Considerable work has been done to ensure that Lime Grove House meets the needs of the States of Jersey Police. Initial work in developing detailed layouts has, through the adoption  of  modern  occupancy  standards,  enabled  more  functions  than  originally envisaged to fit in to the building. Lime Grove House will accommodate c. 180 staff across a range of functions, which include –

• Criminal Justice Unit
• Legal advice
• Public Protection Unit
• Criminal Investigation Department
• Joint Financial Crimes Unit
• Scenes of Crime Unit – including laboratory facilities
• Special Branch
• Control Room
• Professional standards
• Administration (HR, IT (including server room), facilities, etc.)
• Training and incident rooms
• Directorate (including senior management, and Gold and Silver command facilities).

Although the agreed price of the building must remain confidential until such time as the transaction has been completed, Members should be aware that the Minister for Treasury and Resources has carried out considerable work to ensure that the purchase price represents value for money. The proposed acquisition has been subject to lengthy negotiations, the agreed price is supported by independent valuations and the proposal forms part of the least cost and most beneficial option for meeting the needs of the States of Jersey Police.

The original budget for the police capital project was set in 2003 on the basis of a development on the Esplanade that did not include land acquisition costs. The capital budget available is insufficient to meet the needs of the States of Jersey Police for the complete project, including fitting out Lime Grove and refurbishing and redeveloping the Rouge Bouillon site. Whilst still the most cost-effective option, an additional £2 million from the capital programme is required over and above the sum previously included in the 2011 Business Plan, up to 2012, to ensure it can be completed. It is therefore proposed that additional allocations of £1 million are made in each of 2013 and 2014 to enable the later stages of the project to be completed.

Lime Grove House can be acquired and fitted out from within the existing approved capital budget.

The  acquisition  of  this  building  very  much  supports  the  broader  strategy  of rationalising  the  estate.  This  work  will  present  a  major  opportunity  to  deliver significant  savings  and  generate  greater  collaborative  working  across  States departments by adopting a radical approach to rationalising and consolidating office accommodation.

Through purchasing a building which is modern with open floor plates, it is possible to deliver much improved space utilisation, in particular through the implementation of modern standards within offices. With the buildings to be vacated not fit for purpose and having been converted from other primary use (i.e. a school and a factory), they will never be able to accommodate people in the most effective way.

This  project  represents  the  first  major  step  in  the  office  rationalisation  strategy designed to deliver greater efficiency in the occupation of States buildings, reduce the number of sites occupied and improve ways of working and collaboration between departments.  Through  a  combination  of  moving  to  modern  accommodation  and vacating inadequate, poorly utilised space, this project will –

• result in a reduction in floor space of c. 30,000 square feet;
• free up the whole of the Summerland Site for housing;
• allow the implementation of modern office space standards and enable the States of Jersey Police to improve its ways of working.

In summary, this acquisition forms part of a good and timely solution for the States of Jersey Police which is the most cost-effective, and supports the broader strategy of rationalising the estate.

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