Purpose

To take all necessary steps to purchase, then
renovate or dispose of the long term empty properties known as Holmebridge
Cottage and The Old Post Office, Holmebridge, Wareham, Dorset, BH20 6AF.

 

Delegated officer decision as per the Scheme of
Delegation detailed below

 

 

Reasons for the decision

It is a strategic priority of the Dorset Council
Plan 2024 to 2029 and the Housing Strategy
January 2024 to January 2029 to ensure our residents have access to affordable,
suitable, secure homes where they can live well as part of sustainable and
thriving communities. Action on long term empty homes forms a key element of
both our Council Plan and Housing Strategy.

 

This decision will
enable officers to purchase two long-term empty properties to bring them back
into beneficial residential use and remedy their
adverse environmental, economic, and social impact on the surrounding area.
This work forms part of the Councils Empty Property Strategy.

Alternative options considered

Alternative
options considered and rejected:

 

Alternative
option 1:

Commence the
process to make an Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO) under the Housing Act
2004

Option rejected.

An EDMO empowers the Council to take over the management and letting
(not ownership) of a property for a maximum period of 7 years. This option has
been discounted as it will require the Council to pay for the complete
renovation and improvement of the properties to a current lettable standard and
then arrange for its ongoing letting and management over this 7-year period.
The properties are then returned to the freehold owner. The property are in
very poor condition and the affordable rent received over this 7-year period
will not cover the cost of repairing the properties to a lettable standard.
Therefore this option is not economically viable.

 

Alternative
option 2

Commence the
process of a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO)

Option rejected

The current owner
has agreed to sell the properties voluntarily to the Council and therefore
acquiring the property using a CPO is not appropriate

 

Alternative
option 3:

Do not purchase the properties voluntarily and instead continue to try
and persuade the owner of the properties to bring them back into use by other
means, including ‘watching and waiting’, private sale or renovation.

Option rejected.

The properties have been empty for at least 15 years and are having a
detrimental effect on the amenity of the area. Due to their condition and
incidents of unauthorised access (‘break ins’/squatting) they generate
complaints from residents and local Councillors.

The owner has only agreed to sell the properties to the Council via a
private sale and has shown no intention to dispose of the properties on the
open market.

 

When weighing up
the options available to the Council, the location of the properties and their
impact on the local area, then it is not considered appropriate to continue
pursuing a ‘watch and wait’ informal approach.