Purpose

An area of land at Hill St was leased to John Merriman and Son Limited in 1977 for the purpose of erecting industrial units.  The site was then operated by Gerald Merriman, who was in the process of selling the café and yard area, as he needed to raise funds to pay for his mother’s care home fees.  As the land was subject to the lease, he couldn’t sell his property without also assigning parts of the ground lease to the purchaser of the café and yard.  The lease was at a peppercorn rent for the duration of the term.

Decision

That approval be given for the proposed two-part assignments of the lease covering the café premises & the yard.

Reasons for the decision

The land at Hill Street is subject to a 100-year ground lease from the 1 May 1977, at a peppercorn without review.  The tenant has agreed to sell the building and yard erected thereon to two separate entities and therefore needs the Council’s consent to the two-part assignments of the ground lease to enable the sale to proceed.

Alternative options considered

The lease permits assignment with the Council’s consent, which is not to be unreasonably withheld.  We do not have a valid reason to refuse the consent and could ultimately be liable for financial damages to the tenant if he suffers losses due to our refusal.

Thus, there are no viable alternative options.