TOWN councillors have put a spanner in the works of East Hampshire District Council’s emerging plan to sell off land at Penns Place for housing.
Elected town members agreed to register the EHDC- owned sports pitches adjacent to the council offices at Penns Place as an asset of community value at last week’s full town council.
Once listed, the local community must be informed if the pitches are listed for sale within the five-year listing period. The community can then enact the Community Right to Bid, which gives them a moratorium period of six months to determine if they can raise the finance to buy the asset.
The Penns Place sports pitches had previously been registered by the town council as assets of community value after concerns they may be sold. That registration had lapsed and not been renewed as the town council said its concern had “diminished”.
However, as the sale of the land was now being discussed again, members agreed at the July 22 meeting of the town council that it would be “useful to register the land again to protect the sports pitches for community use”.
Concerns were expressed this could conflict with the town council’s aim to secure a transfer of the ownership of the land from EHDC under a community asset transfer.
But after seeking legal advice, town clerk Neil Hitch informed members he had been advised to proceed with both the registration as an asset of community value and with the proposed land transfer.
Subsequently, councillors resolved to register the sports pitches at Penns Place in the ownership of EHDC under Chapter 3 of the Localism Act and the Assets of Community Value Regulations 2021.
It comes after EHDC’s cabinet agreed to spend £150,000 of taxpayers’ money to explore the “option” of selling its Penns Place offices, and the surrounding land owned by the council, for redevelopment.