Schedule of land and property assets owned by the public

1240/5(8206)

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR TREASURY AND RESOURCES BY DEPUTY J.H YOUNG OF ST. BRELADE

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 18th MARCH 2014

Question

Will the Minister make available to the Assembly, a schedule of the land and property assets currently owned by the public, identifying those earmarked for sale and disposal, together with a statement of the policy criteria when deciding that such land and property asset :

1. is a strategic asset;
2. is wholly operational in nature;
3. should be retained permanently in public ownership in perpetuity;
4. should be retained in public ownership to conserve Jersey's heritage and culture;
5. should be retained to preserve the Island environment and the public access and enjoyment of it;
6. should be retained to ensure our community can continue to benefit from the amenity currently enjoyed;
7. should be retained in public ownership only when used for public service provision;
8. should be exploited for economic purposes by re-development and disposal?

Would the Minister further advise whether in deciding to sell public property he recognizes the special importance in Jersey of all of our built heritage or whether his policy is selective and, whether he ensures that public land and property assets in our coastal National park, especially land alongside the coast at St. Ouen 's Bay should be maintained in their existing open and undeveloped state?

Answer

By agreement with Deputy Young this answer is restricted to those land and building assets that have been earmarked for disposal.

A full list of the attributes of land and building assets owned by the Public has been circulated separately to members in spreadsheet form.

Members approved in the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) a Capital Programme for 2013 to 2015. Appendix 4 of the MTFP document recognises that receipts from disposal of surplus land and building assets are a significant potential source of funding.

In seeking to dispose of surplus land and building assets, the Treasury and Resources Minister is acting under delegated authority to deliver States Members approved policy.

In his question, the Deputy provides a list of policy criteria' for disposal. This does not reflect an approved policy.

The decision to dispose of a property is not a mechanical process that can be related to a checklist of criteria. Each property proposed for sale will have unique circumstances, which may or may not relate to the Deputy 's list. For example, disposal of a small area of land will have a very different assessment process to the proposed sale of a site for an extensive residential development.

When considering property assets for disposal that have been identified as surplus to requirement for their existing purpose, Jersey Property Holdings will consult with departments to determine whether there is an alternative operational use.

Any identified operational use will need to be supported by a business case for that purpose, which clearly demonstrates that retaining the property provides the best value for the Public in support of approved States strategic policies.

Where the Public's interests, and wider community interest, in the disposed land needs to be retained, for example through the retention of rights of access, this will form part of the disposal recommendation to the Minister and will be reflected in the sale documentation.

Limitations of the future use of a site and its physical attributes will be a matter for the Planning Department to determine with reference to Planning Policy.

The following list comprises those land and building assets sold or identified for disposal within the current MTFP period 2013 to 2015. This list is current and may change during the period should either properties be withdrawn from disposal for any reason or other properties be added as opportunities arise. The list excludes the sale of rights that do not include the disposal of property assets.